University of Stuttgart recertified as "Young Entrepreneurs in Science Campus" for the fourth time

Following successful certification in 2021 for the "Young Entrepreneurs in Science Campus" certificate from the Falling Walls Foundation's "Young Entrepreneurs in Science" (YES) initiative of the same name, the University of Stuttgart achieved follow-up certification for the third time in February 2024. This distinguishes the university as a partner institution of the initiative, which promotes more entrepreneurial spirit in science and research. Fulfilling the quality criteria proves that the close link between research and transfer at the University of Stuttgart is progressing successfully.

„The transfer of research findings to industry and their impact on society as a whole depends on strong, sustainable partnerships. The cooperation with the YES initiative of the Falling Walls Foundation impressively demonstrates how such alliances can effectively promote the transfer of science - as can be seen in projects such as Elements4Founding and QCLUB. The successful recertification underlines how sustainable and future-oriented this collaboration is", says Professor Alexander Brem, Vice Rector for Science Transfer and International Affairs and Director of the Institute of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Science (ENI).

YES shares its mission with the Elements4Founding project based at ENI, which is supported by the Vector Foundation. The aim of this project is to develop a holistic, sustainable approach to sensitizing and qualifying PhD candidates and postdocs for the topic of entrepreneurship over the project period between 2022 and 2024. Various formats such as workshops and events are intended to involve the target group at the levels of awareness-raising, qualification and advanced planning. Several joint events have already taken place in 2023, for example workshops on the topics of Design Thinking, Teamwork Essentials, From PhD to Innovator and Social Entrepreneurship, which were supported by strong partners such as the Young Entrepreneurs in Science Initiative. Further events and workshops are planned for 2024 in cooperation with the initiative. They are also intended to show and communicate to participants the opportunities for subsequent support in order to promote sustainable science transfer at the University of Stuttgart.

Elements4Founding is a project of the Institute of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Science (ENI) at the University of Stuttgart. The objective of the project is to develop a holistic, integrated and sustainable approach to sensitize and qualify PhD students and post-docs for the topic of entrepreneurship over the project period between 2022 and 2024. Various formats such as workshops and training events are intended to involve the target group at the levels of awareness-raising, qualification and more advanced stage of planning. They are intended to demonstrate and convey to the participants in each case the possibilities for subsequent support. The constant exchange and close cooperation with regional and international partners from business and science ensure this. The accompanying research is aimed at making an important contribution to the topic of Entrepreneurship Education for Early Career Researchers. Elements4Founding is funded and supported by the Vector Foundation.