A start-up incubator was launched by the University of Luxembourg in September 2017 on the Belval campus. The structure permits students and researchers to receive assistance in turning their business ideas into start-ups.
In the last 18 months, around 800 students have taken part in various projects. 31 business plans have been looked at, some of which progressed. Currently around 17 projects are under supervision.
The incubator offers students an infrastructure as well as mentors who can assist with advice and contacts. The mentors are all volunteers. Itzel Lerma Martinez, who runs the Venture Mentoring Service programme, said mentors are people corresponding to a particular profile, who not only bring business skills to the table, but also their personal experience with success; passing their advice to young people without expecting anything in return.
Once a start-up has been registered as a company in Luxembourg, it can rent office space and any correspondence can be addressed to the Belval Campus office. The office costs just one euro a month to rent. The incubator programme is free at the point of use for students, as the service is included in university fees.
The incubator team also organises a number of events, workshops and conferences, to bring University of Luxembourg students closer to entrepreneurship. One of these is the "Falling Walls Lab", an event where students and researchers can present their business ideas in a worldwide competition. The final will take place in Berlin this November, with Pallavi Sabharwal, a researcher, representing the University of Luxembourg as winner of this year's stage. Sabharwal's idea is a result of research, which seeks to genetically modify a plant virus in order to produce antibodies which can be used for therapeutic purposes.
Video in Luxembourgish
