Don't be afraid to launch your start-up
Do you have a start-up project in the works? Then the class “venture challenge” starting on the 22nd of February will give you some of the tools you need to get your start-up off the ground.
It is not easy to get into the shoes of an entrepreneur when you are still wearing your sneakers to class. But if the shoe fits, then it is important to have the necessary skills to create and manage your own business before starting out. Organized by venturelab, a course for EPFL students, post-grads, post-docs, and anyone with an advanced Swiss diploma will set you out on the right foot.
“Venturelab is a national program from the Commission for Technology and Innovation (CTI), supported by the Swiss government,” explains Derek Barras, head of the project. “It is therefore free of charge. We are there to help discover the entrepreneurial ecosystem.”
“We chose projects ranging from engineering, computer science and biotechnologies. The more innovative an idea it is, the more discussion and interest it provokes.” Strategy, marketing, communication, business plans, and human resources are only some of the subjects that will discussed during the class - taught in French each Tuesday starting the 22nd of February with a class in English being taught next semester.
“It is interesting to remark that many start-ups that had contact with venture lab are now up and running in EPFL’s scientific park,” continues Barras.
The adventure does not stop when the class ends; venturelab proposes a series of training sessions:
- • Venture ideas – meet successful entrepreneurs who share their experiences
- • Venture plan – how to present and sell your idea to a client or investor
- • Venture training – five days for young entrepreneurs who want to develop a new product and test the market
- • Venture leaders – an intesive course for 10 days in Boston. A chance to delve into the American worlds of start-ups.
Interested? To sign up or for more information, visit www.venturelab.ch