Ata Engin, Kashvi Goud, Kunal Rupchandani and Zofia Staszewska are the four students that make up the University Innovation Fellows (UIF) cohort of 2022-23. Read more about their experiences with the UIF program and the Silicon Valley Meetup they attended at Stanford.
The UIF program is a design-thinking training led by Stanford University’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design (d.school). Following this three-month training, each cohort is given the rest of the academic year to contribute to their university’s innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem, as well as empower other students to become change makers, building bridges between different stakeholders.
UIF design thinking training: expectations versus reality
Of the four fellows, each of them started with a different understanding of design thinking. One fellow was familiar with the term but did not really know what it meant, while the other had led design thinking workshops by themself. Therefore, each experienced the Stanford training differently. Coming together, they realised how important it was to get in touch with all the students and stakeholders involved in the innovation and entrepreneurship (I&E) ecosystem of EUR. They highlighted the prototyping phase of the design thinking process, and how this helped them connect relevant stakeholders. “When trying to deliver an end product or service for a user, it is so crucial to test your assumptions and use prototyping as a way to validate these assumptions (or not). It is a useful skill we learnt during the training, but it can be applied to so much more in life as well”, they explained.
The Silicon Valley Meetup Stanford
Part of the UIF program is the Silicon Valley Meetup. This is where UIF cohorts from universities across the globe come together to take part in workshops, share insights into what they have been implementing and working on at their universities, and connect with new people and perspectives. Talking to the other students, they had a realization that a lot of projects starting up at other universities already had roots at EUR. “I think the next step for the university is to take these initiatives from a student level to a university wide level, making their goals part of their agenda”, they reflected. From the interactions with other students, they also found another key to success for positioning themselves within their respective university’s ecosystem. “Having a strong collaboration between faculty members and UIF cohorts is crucial for success. Building upon this, collaborations with other universities, such as technical universities like TU Delft, could strengthen student initiatives, as well as combine multiple perspectives that come from different types of universities.”
"I think the next step for the university is to take these initiatives from a student level to a university wide level, making their goals part of their agenda"
The workshops ranged from topics such as finding leadership qualities intuitively, called ‘Embodied Leadership’, to setting goals and a vision for yourself, called ‘You Need a Manifesto’. All the Fellows said they wished there was more time for trying the workshops. They also admired the passion that each workshop facilitator had for their topic- it made workshops that they did not think would be interesting turn into the highlight of their trip.
The fellow work and legacy at EUR
Coming back from the Silicon Valley Meetup, the Fellows are now inspired and motivated to end EUR’s last UIF cohort for now, on a high note. They are busy working on two workshops together with Students-for-Students (S4S), to share the insights and gained knowledge during their fellowship, in order to spread the knowledge within the EUR student community.
Keep an eye out on the CLI website and our social media, especially our Instagram (@s4s_cli) to know more about the events that S4S will organize in collaboration with the UIF cohort before the end of the academic year!
- More information
📆 S4S Networking Lunch
Introducing the ideas of the University Innovation Fellows (UIF), meet and connect to collaborate with peers.
Date: Friday, 12 May 2023
Time: 12:00 -14:00hrs
Location: Education Lab, located in the Polak Building.
Register via: link.📆 UIF x S4S | Let's Talk about Money | Finance event
This event aims to destigmatise the topic of money. The interactive event with you and guest speakers. Conversations around finances, money from various aspects, financial struggles and its effects, and practical information for students.
Register via: link.