On the International Day of Human Space Flight, April 12, 2020, Russky Technopark together with Far Eastern Federal University (FEFU) launched the second Acceleration Program in the online format. Following the latest trends, Russky Technopark organizes this year Program online for students as the most promising and dynamic group.

Russky Technopark has successful experience in launching acceleration programslast year. On April 12, 2019, the firstRU Tech Park Accelerator kicked off and gathered 300+ applications from all over the Russian Far East, while 30 of them were selected to the on-site selection process. After the selection, top 12 teams took part in the 3-month acceleration. During its final event - the Demo Day, 11 entrepreneurs became graduates of the Program and were granted an opportunity to present their projects to the experts and investors.

This year students will be working on their projects through the assistance of professional trackers, who are experienced entrepreneurs of the Russian Far East. Besides that, Russky Technopark expects several international friends to join the Program as the speakers and experts. As the culmination of the Program, selected teams will have an opportunity to participate in the Demo Day, and get support from potential investors, as well as present their final work in frames of the "Startup as Diploma" program.

The program of the Accelerator was elaborated after careful consideration of student opinions and included two modules. Participants will be able to listen to the lectures from top experts during the first module, which will be conducted in the format of webinars. The second phase will include online meetings with trackers with subsequent processing of traction cards. The curriculum will cover such topics as customer development, business model canvas, product development, unit economics, marketing, intellectual property protection, startup financing, and pitching.

" Taking into account the feedback received from students, we have decided to involve experienced entrepreneurs as trackers to educational and practical modules of the Program. We conducted a survey among students and found out that they expect to work with mentors and analyze the results of their activities. Thus, using the Internet Initiatives Development Fund technology, Russky Technopark gathered and prepared a team of high-level experts and trackers in different spheres. They will help students to find weak points in the projects and improve the startups. I think it's a good sign to launch the Acceleration Program on the Cosmonautics Day. I wish all the participants to enhance their skills, and believe we will see the graduates of this Accelerator as Technopark residents in the future", - said Russky Technopark CEO Dmitry Borovikov.

It is worth mentioning that FEFU became the first university in Russia to implement the "Startup as Diploma" program in 2017. The Program provides graduates an opportunity to present their innovative startups and get a diploma. FEFU School of Economics and Management student Evgeny Perelman was the first one to graduate in frames of the Program. Evgeny presented his medical project which became a Skolkovo resident and attracted the investment of 10 million rubles.

In 2018, FEFU School of Natural Sciences students Daniil Serbinovich and Arkady Berezkin presented their project on Lower Limb Prostheses that received the investment from the Foundation for Assistance to Small Innovative Enterprises (FASIE). The students had been working on the project for more than one year and got positive feedback from the experts. Moreover, the project participated in FEFU Battle of Engineers in 2017, UMNIK grant program organized by FASIE, XIX World Youth Festival in Sochi, and Russian – Chinese EXPO in Harbin, as well as became a winner of the first Neurostart Bioengineering Hackathon.

As for 2019, seven FEFU graduates managed to present their startups within the program. Four of them were presented by School of Engineering students, two projects were prepared by the School of Natural Sciences graduates, and one was presented by students ofSchool of Economics and Management.

" The year 2020 is a very special to launch RU Tech Park Acceleration Program in the online format for students. What is more important, the "Startup as Diploma" program will be open not only for this year graduates but for all students who work on their high-tech projects. If you still doubt that a student project can become a successful and profitable startup, remember Google, Pinterest, Amazon, Apple, Oculus which were created by students of Princeton, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and University of California." - said the leader of the "Startup as Diploma" program Margarita Ibragimova.

The registration is available till April 21, 2020, 11:59 p.m. (Vladivostok Time Zone):

https://a.rutechpark.ru/.