At first glance, the path from the laboratory to Dragons’ Den may seem long. But that journey is meant to become shorter for graduate students who take the Bio-entrepreneurship course at Aarhus University.

In this course, biology students learn how to connect their scientific findings to a business case. The key question is: how do you turn knowledge into a business?

“The number of researchers who become entrepreneurs is very low—and far from what society needs today,” says Rajiv Vaid Basaiawmoit, who is responsible for several entrepreneurship courses at the university.

“And that’s a shame, because we especially need more scientific entrepreneurs if we are to develop the groundbreaking solutions of the future.”

According to Rajiv, it often comes down to how students perceive themselves. “Entrepreneurship and innovation aren’t the obvious paths for science students, because they typically see themselves as chemists or biologists—not much else,” he says.

It’s a new world and a new way to integrate their academic expertise. Many associate entrepreneurship with Aarhus BSS and business studies.

As a result, Rajiv often meets students who are skeptical and think the course sounds a bit “fluffy.”

“Some ask why they should even go in that direction, while others think it’s not a career path for them. But you don’t become a hardcore businesswoman just by taking this course,” he says. Scientific knowledge and research come first—then the business aspects are built on top.

[Translate to English:]

Det er en ny verden og en ny måde at tænke sin faglighed ind på. Mange forbinder iværksætteri med fx Aarhus BSS og erhvervsøkonomi.

Han møder derfor ofte studerende, der er skeptiske og synes, at kurset lyder lidt ”fluffy”.

”Nogle spørger, hvorfor de dog skulle gå dén vej, mens andre tænker, at det slet ikke er en karrierevej for dem, men man bliver altså ikke hardcore forretningskvinde af at tage det her kursus,” siger Rajiv Vaid Basaiawmoit.

Fagligheden og forskningen kommer først, og så bygger man forretningsdelen på bagefter.

Think Big, Think Science Fiction

The course doesn’t offer a direct path to Dragons’ Den. Students are not required to create a startup, nor do they need to have an idea for one. In this way, the course differs from other initiatives at Aarhus University, such as The Kitchen, which is built around startup ideas and spin-outs.

Instead, entrepreneurship is integrated into the natural sciences, and the aim is to teach students how to think entrepreneurially and approach problems from new angles.

“My vision is to create innovative scientists first—that is, shape students into capable but also entrepreneurial researchers,” says Rajiv. “They need to dare to dream. To think a bit like science fiction. Nothing ever happens if no one dares to think big with science.”

He believes this kind of thinking is essential if we are to find solutions to the major crises facing society today.

The course is structured around five fundamental steps:

Identifying a problem you're passionate about, finding a solution, building a business case, mapping its societal impact, and communicating it.

The first part is scientific. Students must demonstrate that they can identify a problem that their academic background can help solve—and that has the potential to make a difference. That solution should then be developed into a business model that shows it can also be financially sustainable.

“Some find a problem they later decide to base a PhD project on, while others continue developing their case and pitch it—or themselves—to a company afterwards,” says Rajiv.

Tomorrow’s Solutions to Today’s Crises

One example of former students who took the entrepreneurial leap is Leander Hessner and Happylan Natkunarajah. They founded the company Decameal, which emerged from an idea developed during the course: using invasive shore crabs to produce protein for animal feed.

Another example is former student Georgina Sala, who applied for a position at a pharmaceutical company. According to Rajiv, she described the course as formative.

“I'm convinced that the knowledge and skills I gained through the bio-entrepreneurship course are directly applicable to the company's goals and align well with the profile they are looking for,” she said.

A third example is a group of students who developed a solution to detect diseases in chickens by adding a substance to their feed that causes their droppings to change color. This makes it possible to identify and treat individual sick chickens, instead of medicating the entire flock with antibiotics—thereby reducing the risk of antibiotic resistance in humans.

“We're not just creating more scientific entrepreneurs—we're also creating more groundbreaking science,” adds Rajiv.

Nominated as One of Five Finalists Worldwide

After the course, many students have a completely different view—and the initial skepticism is gone. “Several say it’s been one of the most important courses for them, or that the path from the lab to industry now feels much shorter,” says Rajiv.

That’s why he is especially proud to be nominated for the Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year Award, where only five finalists are selected from around the world. “I’m happy that people see value in creating both scientific entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial scientists,” he says. “That includes those who become entrepreneurs, but also those who use their scientific background and innovative thinking within industry.”

The final will take place in Prague from September 10 to 12.