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Mentor program for KTH researchers

About the program

The members of the KTH Innovation Mentor Network want to help ideas and research from KTH reach a market and create impact for more people. This program gives you get the chance to get a personal mentor who can guide you on the path from research to impact through commercialization.

The KTH Innovation Mentor Program aims to help researchers at KTH in your work to create impact, focusing specifically on commercialization.

Good to know

Program period: Six months.

Cost: The program is free of charge.

Who can apply? Researchers, PhD students and employees at KTH (both individuals and teams) with ideas or research results with potential to create impact and value on the market. The program is also open for application for teams in phase two in the KTH Innovation pre-incubator program. You need to be committed to working together with an external business mentor to develop your commercialization project.

After the program: You will have developed your commercialization project, grown your network outside of academia and learned more about commercialization and research impact.

Application deadline: The application period is open. .

How the program works:

We match you with a hand-picked mentor who has experience from industry or startups.

Your mentor will share their experience and knowledge, help open doors, and contribute with new perspectives on your idea, so that your research can reach a market and create impact for more people.

While you work with your mentor, you will also get support from your business development coach at KTH Innovation, who has worked with hundreds of ideas from KTH. The combination means that you develop your project faster and learn more along the way!

You also get the opportunity to network with other researchers at KTH who are interested in impact, utilization and commercialization.

All participants start and finish the program together at KTH Innovation's premises at Teknikringen 1, KTH's meeting place for innovation.

Who should apply?

You are a researcher or PhD student at KTH. You have an idea of how your research could create value in the market or you already have a commercialization project. You have started to take steps to develop your idea and want to get extra support and motivation.

The program is also open to teams in Phase 2 of the KTH Innovation Launch . 

Hear from participants & mentors

Portrait of Lina Tjerneld

Lina Tjerneld

"Getting a mentor is a unique opportunity to start creating a network and learn from someone who has experience that you don’t, but need. Imagine being able to talk about something that interests you for an hour with someone who is only there to help you move forward, without their own gain."

- Lina Tjerneld, sales and marketing expert, with experience from founding several companies

Lauren McKee och Amparo Jimenez Quero

"As researchers, we focus on something very specific and only share it with people who are doing more or less the same thing. Hearing someone from the outside say "that’s a good idea, that can work" is really inspiring."

If only one percent of your brain feels that starting a business is a viable option, then you can learn a lot from this experience. We recommend the program to 100%!"

- Lauren McKee & Amparo Jimenez Quero, researchers at the KTH Division of Glycoscience

Mohamad Takwa

“The KTH Innovation Mentor Program was well structured and enjoyable to participate in. It fills an important function to give researchers the opportunity to connect and learn from innovators and entrepreneurs who have had a similar journey. As a KTH alumnus I was also excited to see the many innovations presented. 

- Mohamad Takwa, scientist, entrepreneur and investor. Mentor to Lauren McKee.

Our mentors

The mentors in our network operate outside of academia and have many years of experience of starting their own companies or having worked in industry.

They work pro-bono to help you find different ways that your research could create impact on the market.

In 2023, 7 out of 8 participating teams gave their mentor a score of 4 or 5 out of 5.

Want to become a mentor?

Contributing with your time and experience and help new technology reach the market and create value in society.

Why should you have a mentor? 

New perspectives

Get new perspectives on your idea, research and different ways to the market. 

New knowledge

Benefit from your mentor's experience and insights.

New contacts

Get to know people from different backgrounds with experience from outside of the academic world.