Penn Engineering Entrepreneurship Grant Funding
In addition to the Engineering Entrepreneurship curriculum, we provide grant funding opportunities for students seeking to develop innovative high-tech products. In our Engineering Entrepreneurship programs, we teach that entrepreneurship and venture development is an iterative process. Similarly, we believe the funding process also should be iterative with students earning additional funds by demonstrating that the can create value with initial funds. Penn Engineering currently has two funds in place to help students build and investigate high-tech products and ventures: the Berkman Opportunity Fund and the Miller Innovation Fellowship program.
To apply for funding, students must be undergraduate or graduate students currently enrolled in a Penn Engineering degree, minor, or certificate program, or they must have completed one or more Penn Engineering Entrepreneurship courses. Teams applying for funds must include at least one student that meets the criteria. Applications will be reviewed by a faculty committee.
Berkman Opportunity Fund
The Berkman Opportunity Fund provide $500-1,000 grants to support students with innovative ideas that might turn in to products and companies. Eligible projects for Berkman funding may be at any stage of development – concept only and needing pilot funding or needing additional funds to demonstrate feasibility or production or even commercialization.
Berkman Fund grants must be used for product development efforts, including materials, components, lab fees, and other costs associated with prototyping and iterating concepts. Grant funds may not be used for legal or professional services. Grant recipients must provide brief reports on use of funds and outcomes.
The Berkman Opportunity Fund was generously established in 2011 by Pamela Toub Berkman, C’83, GED’84 and David J. Berkman, W’83.
Miller Innovation Fellowship
Miller Innovation Fellowships are designed to provide higher levels of support to student entrepreneurs that have used other University resources to investigate and develop their high-tech concepts. Applicants must meet the eligibility requirements above and also have developed their concept by participating in one or more Penn Engineering Entrepreneurship courses, Penn’s Venture Lab programs, or other Penn competitions, resources, and programs for innovation and entrepreneurship (https://venturelab.upenn.edu/for-students). This will ensure that Miller Innovation Fellows have already gained important learning and insight into their venture.
Miller Innovation Fellowship funding should be used for product development and may also be used for marketing and business development purposes as well. Fellows will need to meet with advisors throughout the term and provide periodic pitch decks, press releases, or other marketing materials to chronicle progress. In addition, at the end of the fellowship, they must provide brief reports on use of funds and outcomes.
This Fellowship, which was generously established in 2017 by Melvyn H. Miller, GE’60, GCE’61 and Carolyn Bail Miller, supports student entrepreneurs by providing seed-stage capital to advance high-tech ideas.
Note regarding Intellectual Property: Intellectual property developed are subject to the “Patent and Tangible Research Property Policies and Procedures of the University of Pennsylvania” available at https://pci.upenn.edu/inventors/how-it-works-commercializing-innovation/policies/.
For more information regarding funding opportunities, please feel free to email entrep@seas.upenn.edu.
Applications for Spring 2024 are closed.