Forth Valley College has been chosen to participate in an up and coming programme of events organised by the Research Commercialisation Accelerator (RCA).
The RCA is a foundation programme created by Edinburgh Napier University (ENU) and Heriot Watt University (HWU) with Scottish Government funding, to enable the sharing of services and expertise across institutions, and must involve a college.
FVC has been exclusively selected, as one of Scotland’s leading colleges, to offer the opportunity for any of its staff who have an interest in research. They will learn about the process of how a research idea can be turned into a business opportunity, whether the business is ultimately led by the academic or given to someone else to pursue whilst the academic enjoys royalties.
The programme is available for FVC staff who are interested in research and have a project in mind (no matter how early on in their mind it is) and the dates of the programme are:
Week 1 - 18 Feb | 4hrs | in person @ HWU
Week 2 - 25 Feb | 2hrs | online
Week 3 – 4 March | 2hrs | online
Week 4 - 11 March | 2hrs | online
Week 5 - 18 March | 2hrs | online
Week 6 - 25 March | 4hrs | in person @ HWU
The sessions are workshops and will enable the participating staff to learn the basics around how to take a research idea/project and look at how it could be commercialised into a business or money making opportunity for that person and/or their employer.
Jamie Allan, FVC’s Global Partnerships Manager, who has worked closely on similar programmes, said: “I'm happy to support any of the staff where desired with advice or input. I have an MSc in Management, Enterprise and Innovation, started a global business growth consultancy, and I was the enterprise executive at HWU which covered everything we're aiming to do here, so I'm really passionate about helping the College with everything in this sphere as there is so much potential!
“Sign up materials are attached via the QR code and if anyone has any questions about the above please let me know. Additionally, there is also a Teams page for staff interested in research, under the Communities of Practice, if you would like to join.”
A free event at Strathclyde University for those who are interested in attending and to find out more about creating a business from research – click here
