School:Santa Clara University

Santa Clara University

Promoting Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Santa Clara University has many institutions perfect for growing its students entrepreneurial skills.  A very popular minor at the school is entrepreneurship, where students take classes in many different business disciplines.  This minor also includes an internship with a start up in the Silicon Valley.  The school also offers many clubs such as the Santa Clara Entrepreneurs Organization, which organizes entrepreneurial events such as an elevator pitch competition.  There are also many events run through the school such as start of idea challenges, or programs like Weekend Startup are brought to campus.  

Encouraging Faculty Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Part of Santa Clara being in the Silicon Valley means that a lot of the professors come from entrepreneurial positions.  Many teachers in the business school teach with the entrepreneurial mindset, and give real world examples from their own experiences.  Many faculty also have important relationships with start up companies and encourage these companies to come speak on campus.  Professors also get many grants that the hand off to students to encourage entrepreneurship.  For example in 2008, the engineering school was given a very large grant to grow the entrepreneurial opportunities on campus, and that they have.  Every single senior must create their own design product, considering many entrepreneurial ideals.  

Actively Supporting the University Technology Transfer Function

The Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship on campus facilitates the transfer of technology to students.  It runs various programs and brings speakers on campus all in the name of entrepreneurship.  The center provides a network of connections to various companies and technologies so the students can best flourish in the entrepreneurial mindset.  Technology is also encouraged in the Maker Lab at Santa Clara University, where any student who goes through training can use the lab as much as they wish and create anything they want there.  This very much encourages the creative mindset on campus.  

Facilitating University-Industry Collaboration

The university has many useful connections with companies in and out of the Silicon Valley.  The “Bronco Link” is a site where students can see job and internship postings for companies looking for Santa Clara University students.  There are many startups and entrepreneurial opportunities on the sight.  As stated earlier, there are also very many useful connections with teachers.  Since so many teachers have worked in industry in is very easy to ask a teacher to set up an interview, and all teachers are willing to help.  

Engaging with Regional and Local Economic Development Efforts  

Santa Clara very much encourages its students to aid in regional and local economic efforts.  One very integral way is through the many jobs that Santa Clara University supplies the area with.  Students are given very many opportunities in the area and often stay to work in the area.  The school also runs collaborations with quite a few businesses in the area.  An example of this is the collaboration with NASA and the engineering school, in which many students can work.  The school also encourages its students to be socially responsible in all things including promoting charitable programs in dorms, and even requiring a class that works with some kind of charity.  Santa Clara very much cares and utilizes the surrounding area in a beneficial way.

Related Links

SCU Landscape Canvas

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1tCqumm6LVc6V3bhm-jVaewlbR9_gFjbbxYuPPQaRUhQ/edit?usp=sharing

Other Fellows

http://universityinnovation.org/wiki/Main_Page