The first cycle of the training program for faculty staff Expert2Mentors aimed at improving mentoring skills to support startups was held on Thursday, March 19 at FOS. The training was part of the Venture an Idea project implemented by FOS, Digital Initiative Serbia and partners from the startup ecosystem, supported by USAID.

The first cycle of the Expert2Mentors program will enable 23 members of the teaching staff to improve their knowledge and skills in mentorship to provide support to early-stage startups. Teaching staff will work with experienced lecturers from national and foreign startup ecosystems, including Lazar Stojkoivć, Ivan Bjelajac, Mihajlo Popesku PhD, Sandra Nešić, and Dane Atanasković.

The program is the first step in setting up an academic mentoring community and providing coordinated mentorship support to student startups through formal and informal learning. The first cycle will be followed by Venture an Idea – summer mentorship program for student teams who want to start working on their startup ideas. The summer mentorship program will focus on validating ideas and testing prototypes, as well as training teams to secure initial investments from the ecosystem.

Venture an Idea project aspires to raise entrepreneurial awareness among the youth and to support monetization of innovations. FOS is in charge of growing the mentoring capacities of the faculty staff, mapping and promoting existing entrepreneurial initiatives and innovations at Faculties, and conducting research and analysis of national startup ecosystem case studies.

More information on the Venture an Idea project can be found on the official project website  www.preduzmi.rs. Learn more about FOS project activities at the Faculty’s R&D Center or via email ventureanidea@fon.bg.ac.rs.