For Further Information, please visit the website: http://beyond.idc.ac.il/program/about-the-program/

Information about the program:

IDC Herzliya's new presidential program, IDCBeyond, is a full-time, one-year graduate level program for entrepreneurial leadership and global impact.

The program offers outstanding graduates the opportunity to go through the entire entrepreneurial process – from problem identification to venture creation, eventually establishing real-world companies to tackle significant global challenges.

It is a unique and special form of higher education that caters to a new audience, with a clear emphasis on real-life problem solving capabilities.

The Program

·        Stage 1: 14 weeks of fascinating and in-depth study of 21st century challenges, including weekly on-site visits

·        Stage 2: 22 weeks of venture creation

·        Stage 3: 10 additional weeks in the accelerator for outstanding teams

Stage 1: 21st Century Challenges

The human species faces extraordinary challenges, such as the growing world population, global warming, energy and food shortages, and the growing threat of terrorism.

History has taught us that significant challenges such as these can be translated into specific problems to be solved, and for which we can, with the help of inspiration, cutting edge technology, cooperation and determination, find sophisticated solutions.

The IDCBeyond program was designed with this goal in mind: it is a program for outstanding and motivated young adults who want to make a global impact.

During the program the participants will be presented with a selection of the most significant 21st century challenges in the fields of sustainability, biomedicine, psychology, technology and globalization. The program combines traditional classes with advanced teaching methods from the “flipped classroom”, as well as educational tours covering all aspects of the relevant ecosystem in Israel.

Stage 2: Venture Creation

Building on the experience accumulated at IDC Herzliya from the Zell entrepreneurship program over the past 15 years, the stages that comprise the entire entrepreneurial process will be presented and taught. Students will be guided by leading industry mentors and will work in groups to identify specific problems that touch upon the 21st century challenges covered in the first three months of the program, come up with creative solutions which they will evaluate and implement.

Hands-on tools in all relevant areas will be acquired – from design through finance, law, marketing, sales, human resources and operational management, team building and other soft skills, deal structure and tactics, fundraising and much more. Top practitioners will mentor and assist the teams in both skill acquisition and implementation.

Stage 3: Accelerator

In addition to the extensive and intensive program, and the best facilities, we also offer outstanding teams that have presented a prototype or proof of concept the opportunity to continue in the program’s accelerator for an additional 10 weeks, free of charge.

During these 10 weeks, these teams will have full access to all of the school’s facilities and resources, and they will continue to maintain their relationships with the mentors, advisors and lecturers they worked with while in the program. The teams’ main goal during this time is to advance the ventures to the point that they are ready to raise seed investment. In order to improve their chances of raising money and taking the venture to the next level, the staff of the program and the school will introduce the entrepreneurs to private investors, VCs and other relevant players.

Participants

The Interdisciplinary Center’s name reflects its commitment to the ideal of interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary studies. This ideal, coupled with diversity, is essential for coping with the reality of the modern world and is critical to creativity, entrepreneurship and innovation.

The group assembled for the IDCBeyond program will be both culturally and professionally diverse. Culturally, the group will comprise 20 participants from Israel alongside 20 participants from all over the world, from countries such as India, China, Germany, the United States and many others. Professionally, participants come from various fields, such as natural sciences, life sciences, engineering, computer science, law, business, communications, design, the arts and humanities.

Timeline

·        Registration closes: 1 July 2016

·        Program begins: 30 October 2016

·        Program ends: 20 July 2017

·        Accelerator program begins: 6 August 2017

·        Accelerator program ends: 29 September 2017