Strathclyde Business School launches Venture Bootcamp in the UAE this summer

A series of intensive one-day sessions featuring co-founder networking and pitches for investment to commence on July 23

Dubai, UAE; June 28, 2023:  Strathclyde Business School (SBS), the 2023 European Entrepreneurial University of the Year, brings its bootcamp venture creation programme to the UAE. Entrepreneurs and start-ups across the emirates can draw on a trailblazing venture community. By connecting with co-founders, industry experts, and academic specialists, participants can turbocharge their business idea in a series of intensive one-day sessions starting July 23.

Supporting the UAE’s National Agenda for Entrepreneurship to maintain the UAE’s position as the world’s most entrepreneurial nations (Gem Survey, 2022), the bootcamp is one of the ways that SBS is paving the way for startups to engage with its dynamic and influential venture community. Strathclyde Business School’s award-winning Inspire programme of venture creation, is acknowledged as a leading European university-based centre of Entrepreneurship with an exceptional rate of spin out ventures by staff and students. Named as the 2023 Best European Entrepreneurial University of the Year, it has a rare triple accreditation and is third highest in Scotland for its range of world-leading research. The programme aims to promote venture building: it is based on the UAE government agenda and the University’s expertise in fintech, sustainable tourism, future cities, digitization and energy transition. The bootcamps focus on refining ideas and product so they are ‘market fit’, the major factor in startup business success or failure.

Caroline Whitfield, Academic and Practitioner in Entrepreneurship at SBS said: “Our sessions support a range of in-demand fields including Spacetech, Water, Agritech, Fintech, Proptech and Sustainable Tourism that fuel the UAE economy. The venture community presents an excellent opportunity for aspiring entrepreneurs to network whilst launching businesses alongside existing ‘real-life’ commitments. Participants will gain practical insights in a structured learning environment. Our evidence-based approach is developed with a deep understanding of market needs, and we’ve carefully timed the first bootcamp to take place in summer, when people are planning their next moves ahead of the busy period.”

Caroline Whitfield, Academic and Practitioner in Entrepreneurship at Strathclyde Business School

The bootcamps, which will run monthly from July 23, offer an output-driven, pitch-free, practical experience led by industry professionals including local entrepreneurs, Strathclyde University experts and investors. They will provide comprehensive coverage on building a business, individualised assistance for entrepreneurs to identify specific objectives and strategies to get market evidence. Participants will also learn to test their product in the marketplace, gather information and evidence, and take the necessary steps to develop it further.

Abigail Davenport, Head of Strathclyde Business School Dubai Campus added, “Strathclyde University is a progressive place of useful learning. This initiative is our contribution to the UAE government’s priorities, one of which is advancing STEM learning. Through our partnerships with the local business community, we impart valuable concepts and actionable steps on entrepreneurship to those looking to embark on an exciting business innovation journey. Our alumni board will review your venture pitch to optimise it for launch and to potential investors. This initiative builds on Strathclyde’s existing track record of its previous, very successful Inspire programme of commercialization and venture development. At SBS it is our belief that everyone has the potential for entrepreneurship.”

Registration for the one-day camp is priced at AED499 with 50% off for Strathclyde alumni and includes related community events such as venture clinics, co-founder speed matching events and pitching opportunities.

For more information, please contact: sbs-uae@strath.ac.uk.

-ENDS-

About the University of Strathclyde

The University of Strathclyde is a leading international technological university based in the centre of Glasgow. Inspired by our founding principle as ‘a place of useful learning’, our mission is to make a positive difference to the lives of our students, to society and to the world.Strathclyde students benefit from an innovative and practical educational experience enhanced by its integration with our research capabilities, high-quality academic resources and an unparalleled industry engagement programme. The excellence of our research is evidenced by the growth in range and scale of our research collaborations and by our performance in the Research Excellence Framework 2021 where almost 90% was rated ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally-excellent’. We have redefined how we collaborate and work with industry, government and the third sector to ensure innovation and knowledge exchange are fundamental activities that deliver tangible impact.

Strathclyde was named the Times Higher Education UK University of the Year 2019, the Sunday Times Good University Guide Scottish University of the Year 2020 and was awarded a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education for its excellence in energy innovation in 2020 and for excellence in advanced manufacturing in 2022.

About Strathclyde Business School

Founded in 1948, the University of Strathclyde Business School is a pioneering, internationally renowned academic organisation that shapes and develops the business minds of tomorrow.  Strathclyde Business School is one of four faculties forming the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow and its subject departments and specialist units collaborate to provide a varied programme of specialist and cross-disciplinary courses. We have established international centres in Greece, UAE, Oman, Bahrain, and Malaysia, where we offer degrees such as the Strathclyde MBA and Masters in Fintech. Strathclyde Business School has held triple accreditation from the three main business school accreditation bodies – AMBA, EQUIS and AACSB – since 2004 and we were the first business school in Scotland to achieve triple accreditation. We were also the first business school in Scotland to be awarded the Small Business Charter Award, which recognizes our world-leading support for scaling Scottish firms through innovation, internationalization and leadership.  Strathclyde Business School has been recognised in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021 for its world-leading research – with a GPA of 3.26, this positions SBS as the third-highest overall quality of all Scottish institutions as ranked by Times Higher Education (THE). Our departments and programmes also hold internationally recognised industry accreditations such as CIMA, ICAS, and CIPD.  Strathclyde Business School is recognised as the 2023 European Entrepreneurial University of the Year by the Accreditation Council for Entrepreneurial and Engaged Universities (ACEEU), the only globally-operating quality assurance body with a focus on acknowledging engagement and entrepreneurship in Higher Education.