YES — we are innovators!

Boosting scientific transfer—together.

Enabled by our partnerships with universities and academic institutions, Young Entrepreneurs in Science empowers academic personnel, doctoral researchers, and postdocs to put their ideas into practise. We help enhance our partners’ startup activity by motivating early-career researchers to transfer their ideas to incubation units, and thereby obtain a reputation as incubators for innovative startup ideas and excellent research transfer.

We work closely together with our partner institutions to promote their YES programme, providing relevant assets to spread the word via newsletters and social media. During the role model Q&A session as part of our workshop programme, our academic partners can showcase their home-grown talent as well as inspire researchers with insights into successful startup stories. As part of the pitch jury, partners gain first hand access to the ideas and the masterminds behind them. In return, we break down the wall between participants and the incubation units and help make scientific transfer more approachable for them.

The benefits of a YES partnership

• a nation-wide network to foster knowledge-based innovation and entrepreneurial spirit
• valuable addition to the regional programme with diverse formats accessible to an international target group (English language)
• regular online network meetings and exchange with colleagues from all around Germany
• networking with our participants and the Falling Walls community
• Chance to obtain: certification as Young Entrepreneurs in Science CAMPUS to make excellent knowledge transfer visible

Bridging the gap between academia and industry

Our corporate partners make themselves known among science talents of their region, promote their programmes for corporate entrepreneurship and thereby invigorate the environment of knowledge exchange and business development in which they are operating. By fostering exchange between corporate and academic partners, Young Entrepreneurs in Science creates touch points for all the relevant players in the field of innovation. Together, we aim to create a more startup-friendly environment in Germany and improve the public perception of German enterprises as drivers of innovation.

Our “CAMPUS” Certificate for Partners

Our Young Entrepreneurs in Science CAMPUS certificate awards partner institutions for their outstanding engagement in promoting entrepreneurial thinking amongst young researchers. The institutions of the YES CAMPUS network excel at pushing our common mission to promote and accelerate scientific innovation transfer in Germany.

The criteria for the certification include meeting our quality standards for promoting and facilitating the workshops in close partnership. The certificate is valid for one year, after which every CAMPUS partner will be evaluated again.

What are the benefits of the CAMPUS certificate?

• Be visible as part of our German-wide network of institutions that advocate for entrepreneurial thinking and acting in the German scientific landscape
• Set yourself apart with our high-quality, modularised workshop programme that can be integrated into your curriculum
• Help to make YES an indispensable part of the local programmes at German career centres and incubation units
• Share ideas for new workshop modules and methods
• Help to push the political agenda of our joint mission

How to apply?

As a YES partner you can apply for the certification by completing a brief questionnaire. We open two application rounds per year, in May and October.

Become a certified YES Trainer—in our unique, free-of-charge educational track for academic personnel of the YES partner network. As a participant you learn to impart relevant methods from Design Thinking and you gain confidence to moderate workshops for a discerning audience of highly-qualified researchers—together with 20 colleagues and guided by our trainers. You have the chance to network with colleagues from all across Germany. Our coaches will guide you through the 4-month programme and assure that you will transition smoothly from a student to a teacher role. After completing the programme, you will receive a certificate as well as full access to our workshop materials to start your YES Trainer career.