Building Start-ups at Universities
6 - 19 Oct 2026
3 days
Are you looking for a framework to develop and support the entrepreneurial mindset of students within your university’s setting? You have just found the course for you!
Guided by global experts, you’ll engage in interactive workshops and masterclasses, gaining insights into creating connected educational programs and incubators for student and academic start-ups.
Did you know? Participating in this course will earn you 1.5 Continuing Education Units and a UIIN Badge!
*Please note that dates might be subject to change. They will be confirmed closer to the start date of the course.
This training course is freely accessible for our Accelerator & Changemaker members
Sorry to bother you..
We just wanted to make sure that before you register and pay, you are aware that this and many other learning opportunities are included and/or discounted in a UIIN community membership :)
Benefits of joining UIIN
- Networking
Expand your network in the online community and at our many events. - Learning
Develop your professional skills with our seminars, masterclasses and training courses. - Actionable insights
Discover our case studies, reports, podcasts & more. - Tailored & strategic guidance
Join roundtable discussions, get tailored strategy sessions and receive a diagnostic report.
Who should attend
- University Leaders: Vice presidents and deans aiming to advance academic and student entrepreneurship while fostering regional connections and impact.
- Entrepreneurship Unit and Incubator Staff: Senior staff focused on increasing the quantity and quality of university-originated startups.
- Knowledge Transfer Professionals: Experts developing strategies and support structures to drive student and academic entrepreneurship activities.
Learning outcomes
This course will enable you to:
- Design and implement a vision and roadmap for a university incubator or entrepreneurship centre
- Develop entrepreneurial teams at your university in collaboration with external partners and networks
- Identify and activate resources and funding to support entrepreneurial activities
- Evolve your approach from facilitating entrepreneurship to accelerating entrepreneurship
- Test different entrepreneurial approaches and processes for start-up success at your university
- Better articulate the value and impact of entrepreneurial activities at your university
- Expand your personal and professional network
Course elements
Week 1
6 Oct
Introduction to the course
Onboarding
Setting up for Student Entrepreneurship Success | Workshop
Ignite student entrepreneurship by defining a clear vision, comprehending entrepreneurship education frameworks, applying practical tools, discerning between centralised and decentralised approaches, and understanding the importance of creating dedicated spaces for entrepreneurship.
Week 2
12 Oct
Supporting Student Start-ups and Beyond | Masterclass
Gain expertise in fostering entrepreneurial teams by creating supportive environments, understanding the entrepreneurial process, applying essential tools, and mastering the implementation of effective funding approaches, along with knowing when and how to engage mentors and trainers.
The Principles for a Successful University Incubator or Entrepreneurship Centre | Workshop
Acquire skills in assessing needs, creating a vision, securing resources, attracting investors, understanding program development, planning personnel and infrastructure, and identifying structures for various entrepreneurship pathways at universities.
Week 3
19 Oct
Sharing Best Practices in Student Entrepreneurship and Incubation | Practice Exchange
In this interactive session, participants will have the opportunity to share their own approaches, strategies, and experiences in fostering student entrepreneurship and managing incubation or entrepreneurship centres. By discussing real-life challenges and successes, participants will gain valuable insights and inspiration from one another, enhancing their ability to drive impactful student entrepreneurship initiatives.
Developing a University Incubator, Unit or Program | Knowledge-to-Practice
Create a manifesto and design for an entrepreneurship program, centre or incubator. Undertake a needs assessment and develop a roadmap and plan together with peers.
Closing
Wrap-up
Facilitators & Experts
Todd has consulted to the European, Australian, and Vietnamese Governments, and to multiple universities. Todd is an Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship at the IMT Business School in Paris and a visiting researcher at Imperial College (UK), Technical University of Vienna (AUT) and the University of Adelaide (AUST) in the topics of entrepreneurship and innovation.
Balzhan is Director of Research & Training at UIIN, where she leads the development and scaling of training courses and ensures that research insights are translated into practical value for our community. She holds a PhD in university–business collaboration and brings deep expertise in connecting research, practice, and innovation to strengthen collaboration between higher education and industry.
"The highlight of the training has been the 360 degrees holistic approach to entrepreneurship: exploring evidence-based frameworks, getting merged into other people's challenges, taking the conversation out into the local environment, sharing stories, learning how other people do things, but then also validating a lot of the work that we do."
"I knew this course would give me the opportunity to get headspace and focus on how we develop an approach to this in our university. And the fact that you get to meet with other peers that are in the same space as you are, created space for me to learn from others, but also develop my own thinking. That's why I chose to do the course, and it didn't disappoint".
"This training is most useful and informative for those of us who wish to transform our Higher Education Institutions to be more entrepreneurial and engaged. It outlines the benefits of this cultural change and sets out the road map of how to start the transformation process. A very worthwhile and engaging learning experience!”
Questions? Book a one-on-one with us.
Dr. Balzhan Orazbayeva, Manager Strategic Initiatives
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