Silicon Valley Innovation & Entrepreneurship Scholarshops (SVIES) Program

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This National Science Foundation (NSF) Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM) project at San Jose State University in San Jose, California will provide scholarships and support services to academically-talented students pursing graduate engineering degrees who demonstrate financial need. This project called the Silicon Valley Innovation and Entrepreneurship Scholarships (SVIES) Program will provide graduate students of the College of Engineering with opportunities to learn about innovation and entrepreneurship, equips them with methods facilitating innovation, and matches them with Silicon Valley innovators and entrepreneurs as mentors. Entrepreneurship and innovation are critical factors in a thriving economy. This project will develop entrepreneurial skills in engineering students from financially disadvantaged backgrounds. The program will expand the career options of talented low-income engineering students who may have otherwise been unfamiliar with opportunities and methods of technological entrepreneurism and innovation. The goal of the San Jose State University (SJSU) Silicon Valley Innovation and Entrepreneurship Scholarships Program is to increase the nation's capacity to produce technological innovations that drive economic growth. The scholarship recipients will form a learning community and engage in joint study of successful Silicon Valley technological innovations and entrepreneurs and in team practice of the lessons learned. With direct mentoring from Silicon Valley innovators and entrepreneurs and seven SJSU College of Engineering faculty members, SVIES scholars will develop their innovation mindsets, acquire innovation and entrepreneurship skills, and have the opportunity to incorporate innovation and entrepreneurship into their career plans. The project will help talented engineering students from low-income backgrounds to become effective technological entrepreneurs. Evaluation and assessment will focus on measuring and documenting learning outcomes in high-level competencies associated with innovation and entrepreneurism. These outcomes include: the mindset of innovation and entrepreneurship, knowledge of the need-idea-venture process, and ability to innovate, create and refine a technological invention; develop a business plan and launch a new business venture. Lessons learned and best practices that emerge from the program evaluation data will be disseminated widely to the engineering education community.