Techstars, the University of Colorado Boulder and Northeastern University are creating novel opportunities for Techstars founders and university students and alumni. The partnerships bridge important gaps in professional development and entrepreneurship by helping entrepreneurs more easily pursue advanced degrees, and it gives students and alumni opportunities to join the Techstars network and immerse themselves in the world of entrepreneurship and investment. 

“At Techstars, we know an entrepreneur’s journey never ends,” says David Cohen, cofounder and Managing Partner at Techstars. “But with their many commitments and the time it takes to develop an idea into a successful business, it’s often hard for founders to pursue professional development. Business school curriculum offers value-added insights, skills development, and networking opportunities that founders can greatly benefit from. We want to help entrepreneurs succeed by making it easier to pursue these opportunities, and nurture the next generation of founders.”

Each partnership features two offerings:

Automatic credit toward degrees: Opportunity for Techstars accelerator alumni to automatically receive credit hours toward their MBA or other degrees at partner universities, based on the work they have already done getting their startups off the ground. 

Talent development: Providing students and graduates of the universities with unique opportunities to become members of Techstars accelerator program teams around the world as Associates. In addition, partner universities receive detailed information on thousands of Techstars portfolio job opportunities for their students and alumni.

Sharon Matusik, Dean of Leeds School of Business at University of Colorado Boulder, describes the Leeds+Techstars Elevate program as “a game changing opportunity for our students and alumni. Techstars is the best entrepreneurial network on the planet, and this puts our students and graduates in the middle of that ecosystem while also allowing Techstars alumni a head start in the continuation of their own educational journeys.”

Northeastern University’s Dunton Family Dean of the D’Amore-McKim School of Business Raj Echambadi agrees. “We have a rich history rooted in experiential education, and the robust Techstars community equally values the lessons learned from experimentation, lifelong learning, and innovation. It’s an exciting partnership, and we look forward to both educating and learning from Techstars alumni.”

Click here to learn more about Leeds+Techstars Elevate, or visit leeds.ly/techstars. Click here to learn more about the D'Amore-McKim School of Business at Northeastern University.

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