Entrepreneurship Programs

Entrepreneurship Programs for all Mason students and faculty

George Mason is now part of the newly formed NSF I-Corps Mid-South Hub: part of the National Innovation Network, a national network of NSF-funded researchers from I-Corps Teams and Hubs. Working together, this network of thinkers addresses America’s need for innovation education.

To achieve the goal of creating a collaborative network across the region, the Mid-South Regional I-Corps Hub leverages resources and expertise from each of the nine universities and hosts world-class training programs for scientists and engineers.

NSF I-Corps Program

The NSF I-Corps is a program that teaches students, faculty, staff, and university researchers the process of taking a business idea or university research discovery towards licensing or commercialization. 

Program participants will use Lean Launchpad curriculum to assess the commercial viability of opportunities that arise from academic research in the STEM fields, by conducting customer interviews and working closely with mentors who have commercialization expertise.

The George Mason University I-Corps program will work on exploratory business ventures started by faculty, staff, students and recent alumni, training up to 30 Site Teams each academic year to accelerate business exploration and creation.

The teams consist of:

  • an entrepreneurial lead – typically a student or postdoctoral fellow,

  • an academic lead– typically a staff or faculty member, and

  • a mentor, who can be a non-Mason affiliate.

The program will include an I-Corps regional course over the semester, designed to introduce participants to the key concepts and methodologies used in I-Corps, which is the rigorous market assessment and validation program pioneered by the NSF.  Moreover, upon completion of the I-Corps Site program, participants are eligible to apply for the National I-Corps Team program (an intensive 6-week NSF training with the opportunity to be awarded a $50,000 grant for further assessment of the opportunity) as well as many other funding opportunities.

MIX Entrepreneurship Programs

Open to all students and faculty, for those who are interested in learning more about entrepreneurship, we partner with a statewide program called the ICAP (Innovation Commercialization Assistance Program). This program guides students through the journey of entrepreneurship via exposure to Lean Startup methodology.

The ICAP course is a 2.5-week intensive assistance program that helps innovators learn how to identify their initial customer segment, validate their ideas, and develop a business model. The MIX incubator space is dedicated to host those student entrepreneurs who attend these business incubator programs.

Our Strategic Partners

  • Innovation Commercialization Assistance Program (ICAP)

    The Innovation Commercialization Assistance Program (ICAP) assists Virginia-based technology and innovation-driven startups on their path to success.

  • Mason Enterprise Center

    Whether you need mentors, private offices, a shared workspace, conference rooms, or a space to host your events, we provide the capabilities you need to grow your business.

  • Mason Small Business Development Center

    Growing NoVA’s small business community with no-cost advice, training, and resources.