Through the Campus Incubators programme, the City of Helsinki aims to create new companies with growth potential together with universities. The programme develops pre-incubator and incubator activities for campuses located in Helsinki. Besides implementing individual incubators, the aim is to form a coherent service package to support research-oriented entrepreneurship, networking between higher education institutions, and facilities for collaboration.
The Campus Incubators programme, launched in 2021, has gained momentum. With the cooperation agreement under the last programme, Arcada University of Applied Sciences has also joined the programme.
Incubators support student entrepreneurship
Many higher education institutions in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area have already started incubator programmes on their campuses. During the autumn, 12 incubators will be implemented at 11 different campuses. Although the incubator programmes may differ slightly in scope and focus on different sectors, they are all based on the same basic elements: workshops and lectures to teach basic skills on entrepreneurship and starting a business, combined with team mentoring, networks, connections and shared facilities.
The teams participating in the programmes learn about developing a business plan, forming a suitable team, understanding the customer’s needs, and sales and marketing. The teams also get to strengthen and develop their business ideas, practice their sales pitch and learn about outside funding.
Entrepreneurship as an option
University and higher education institution campuses provide a natural location for incubation activities to support the emergence of innovations and enterprises based on researched knowledge. Incubation activities complement the high-quality research and basic education of universities and other higher education institutions by offering the opportunity to develop profitable and scalable business activities based on research results or business ideas. This will not only increase the campuses’ regional impact but can also be significant on a global scale.
– University students and researchers are increasingly hoping to find meaning in their studies, research and employment. Many participants in the incubator programmes have a strong motivation to have an impact and enthusiasm to apply their expertise to solving global practical challenges, says Jussi Laine, Project Manager for the Campus Incubators programme from the City of Helsinki.
Campus incubators create the conditions for applying your personality, learning and thinking to determine whether becoming an entrepreneur is a suitable alternative for you.
– Engaging in incubation activities requires a touch of courage if you are not familiar with everyday entrepreneurship. We aim to lower the threshold by bringing the incubator activities to the campuses, Laine continues.
Arcada’s strengths lie in multidisciplinarity and internationality
The extensive Campus Incubators programme already includes Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, Aalto University, University of Helsinki, Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences, University of the Arts Helsinki and Hanken School of Economics. Now, Arcada University of Applied Sciences will join them.
– We are very happy about this cooperation which will enable us to launch a completely new entrepreneurial concept at Arcada, says Rector Mona Forsskåhl.
The timing for joining the Campus Incubators programme was perfect, as Arcada is currently developing new learning and research environments.
– These environments create conditions for innovations that have the potential to be commercialised through the Arcada Entrepreneurship Hub and may therefore lead to new businesses created by students, says Forsskåhl.
Arcada aims to provide Swedish-speaking and international students with a meeting place to enable activities inspiring entrepreneurship.
– The strength of Arcada lies in that we are a multidisciplinary university operating on a common campus. All students, regardless of their degree programme, are welcome to participate in the pre-incubator activities. There is great potential for innovations in cooperation between multidisciplinary and international students, says Lecturer Linn
Hongell.
Arcada’s expertise focuses on areas of artificial intelligence, robotics and simulation, where they also have active RDI activities.
– Arcada Entrepreneurship Hub’s activities will be based on multidisciplinarity, internationality and low-threshold participation. These enable good cooperation between the students and the Arcada staff, Hongell says.
Read more:
News article: Network of business incubators to be created on Helsinki campuses aiming for 100 new companies per year
News article: Campus Incubators programme expanding and diversifying to create new companies through cooperation
