“Enterprise Fellowships” a best
practice example to foster the
innovation process of ECRN
member region Scotland

Enterprise Fellowships help researchers, post-graduate or recently graduated students promote their business ideas. The Fellowship offers a year’s salary, business training to give the knowledge to prepare a viable business plan and helps to take the idea forward.
Furthermore Enterprise Fellowships promote a business development fund to help the young entrepreneurs to get things moving and to have access to networks of mentors, business experts and professional advisers.

The success story of this initiative speaks for itself – over 60 per cent of Enterprise Fellows form successful businesses ranging from yacht sail design, cleaning systems for the oil and gas industry, and a platform technology for pest disease management etc.
The Enterprise Fellowship programme is funded by Scottish Enterprise and delivered by the Royal Society of Edinburgh. Enterprise Fellowship companies are highly regarded:

• They attract a high level of funding from private sector investors.
• The majority of companies are enjoying steady growth.
• Most companies are successful
  (the failure rate is very low see above).

The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE), Scotland's National Academy, is independent and non-party-political. The RSE was founded in 1783 by Royal Charter for the “Advancement of Learning and Useful Knowledge”. Today it has around 1,400 Fellows whose expertise encompasses the full spectrum of the sciences, medicine, engineering and technology, education, law, the arts, humanities, social sciences, business, industry, the professions and public service. It is funded by a range of carefully selected charitable, public and private bodies. Its mission today is providing public benefit through the advancement of learning and useful knowledge.

Fellowships are available in the following fields: Life Sciences; Energy (including oil & gas and renewables); Financial Services; Electronic Markets; Forestry; Food and drink; Tourism; Ship building; Aerospace; Construction; Chemicals; Textiles; and in convergent areas between these sectors.

To be considered for an Enterprise Fellowship, candidates must demonstrate their technology-based business idea and its market potential. The application process is highly competitive, with short-listed candidates presenting their idea to a selection panel comprising some of Scotland’s leading entrepreneurs and academics.

More information available under: http://www.scottish-enterprise.com/se-enterprise-fellowships

Gavin Laird
Scottish Enterprise
phone: +44 (0)141 228 2056
mail: gavin.laird@scotent.co.uk

In cooperation with: