NSF I-Corps Short Course Virtual September Cohort

About

The NSF I-Corps Short Course, hosted by Penn State University, is a three-week online accelerator program designed to help researchers validate their entrepreneurial ideas through customer interviews and lean startup methodologies, offering free participation and access to vital funding resources, with an application deadline of September 5, 2025.

Benefits

• Free participation
• Rapid validation of entrepreneurial ideas through customer interviews
• Access to funding resources from key stakeholders and the entrepreneurial community
• Increased chances of obtaining Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR/STTR) funding
• Experience accumulation for applying to the national I-Corps program, which offers $50,000 in customer discovery funding

Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants must be researchers with entrepreneurial ideas or teams
• Must complete a self-directed I-Corps preparation mini-course
• Primarily for teams in the Penn State area, but teams from the Mid-Atlantic region can also apply

Target Region

Mid-Atlantic Region, USA

Target Sector

Research and Development