The word “bootcamp” conjures up images of drill sergeants training military recruits or similarly inspired fitness training programs. The idea is to improve fitness, strength and stamina by pushing someone to their physical and mental limits. For some of us, it sounds a bit like internship- a time in life that we remember fondly but don’t wish to repeat.
JHU is offering a different type of bootcamp that is focused on helping you develop the skills necessary to bring your idea, technology or other discovery towards implementation. The 2016 JHU Bootcamp is a joint venture between Carey, Medicine and Whiting, and it’s developed as an educational experience aimed to cover a broad scope of discovery domains, with a focus on learning-by-doing.
This is the third year that this course has been offered. Last year, one of the 20 participating teams founded a company to produce a next-generation HPV vaccine, leading to a $5 million NIH grant to support its development. Entrepreneurship is energizing, supports your research, and can be profitable. Your product, IT system or other bright idea can save lives and help all of us.
DOM faculty, post-docs and students are invited. You will meet others on the same journey to create societal improvements through science and medicine. Expect to:
- Learn by doing. Come with an idea or team or join with others to learn about the process of commercialization. The Bootcamp will feature heavy mentoring and applied learning with enough didactics to provide a scaffold to make lessons generalizable.
- Expand your network. Learn from CBS, DOM and Whiting faculty and other colleagues who have successfully navigated the process of taking an idea to market. Teams will align you with people across JHU.
- Expand your skill set. The Bootcamp will prepare participants for business plan competitions, investor meet-ups, idea labs and other events designed to help generate finances to support innovation.
- Use time wisely. The schedule is designed to integrate into the busy schedule: two Saturday mornings and two weekday evenings spread over 6 weeks with project work in between.
Check out http://www.jhubootcamp.com/ for more information.
-Kieren Marr, Associate Vice Chair for Innovation and Commercialization (InCMed)
