Innovation Ecosystem Resources

New in 2025, this course provides an initial skill-building bootcamp (5-days), followed by sustained entrepreneurship mentoring and networking for participants over two years. Course alumni can incorporate Academic Entrepreneurship (AE) skills into careers that translate new research findings and technologies, including AI in medicine, into market-ready medical devices for children and adults. Read more.

This virtual class is held four times per year and is designed to increase awareness of medical entrepreneurship opportunities in clinical and research fields - inside or adjacent to academia. Multimodal sessions with storytelling and interactive cases introduce Academic Entrepreneurship (AE) career paths and associated core concepts. People from within and outside CHOP are encouraged to register. 2025 dates will be announced soon.

The first of its kind, the Innovation Ecosystem (IE) also offers this course for CHOP faculty and staff in the fall. Over 7-weeks, in-person participants build the skills necessary for academic entrepreneurship so they can take their next step in innovation with confidence. Application link opens in summer. Read more.

This awareness and skill building 1-hour session shares the exciting stories of academic entrepreneurs, describes potential MD and PhD career paths in Academic Entrepreneurship and highlights CHOP-Penn resources to support you on this path. This class also provides a preamble to the full professional development course and is held few times a year with speakers and stories varying session-to-session. Sign up to receive IE's invites and newsletter for alerts about this class.

Readings below come from Academic Entrepreneurship for Medical and Health Scientists, a eBook edited by experts from CHOP and UPenn that provides a collection of quick start guides to help navigate the process of translational research through to commercialization and impact. View the full textbook and browse topics: https://academicentrepreneurship.pubpub.org/

I'm new to all of this, where do I start?

• Resources at Academic Entrepreneurship Centers
• Identifying Unmet Needs: Problems That Need Solutions

I'm new to drug development

• Overview of Drug Development
• hFDA Drug Regulation: Investigational New Drug Applications

I'm new to device development

• Overview of Device Development
• Surgical Device Development
• FDA Device Regulation: 510(k), PMA

How does entrepreneurship fit in with my academic career?

• The Promotion Process: Academic Entrepreneurship Career Tracks
• Careers in Academia and Industry: Transitions and Challenges
• Marketing in an Academic Institution
• Forming and Maintaining Meaningful Partnerships between Academic Scientists and Corporations

I have an idea, what do I do next?

• Rapid Prototyping Strategies
• Working with the University Technology Transfer Office
• I-Corps as a Training Tool for New Technology Development

I want to build a team

• Building a Successful Startup Team
• Negotiation Strategies
• A Seat at the Table: Special Considerations for Women and Underrepresented Groups in Academic Entrepreneurship
• Startup Company Formation and Management

How can I fund my work?

• Accelerators and Incubators
• SBIR/STTR Grants: Introduction and Overview
• Nonprofit and Foundation Sponsored Research: Developing New Models of Collaboration for Research and Development)
• Clinical and Translational Science Awards

I run a pilot funding program; what should my award recipients read first?

• Working with the University Technology Transfer Office
• Does My Invention Already Exist? Conducting a Patent/Prior Art Search )
• Rapid Prototyping Strategies
• Overview of Device Development
• Overview of Drug Development
• Digital Health: Software as a Medical Device
• Understanding Conflict of Interest for Academic Entrepreneurs

I run an I-Corps program; what should my teams read first?

• I-Corps as a Training Tool for New Technology Development
• Human-Centered Design: Understanding Customers' Needs through Discovery and Interviewing
• Rapid Prototyping Strategies

What should people read before they meet with Tech Transfer staff?

• Working with the University Technology Transfer Office
• Does My Invention Already Exist? Conducting a Patent/Prior Art Search
• Intellectual Property: Ownership and Protection in a University Setting
• Intellectual Property: Commercializing in a University Setting