It’s wise for founders to explore funding avenues that align with business goals as well as personal and professional values. Regardless of the path you take, it’s important to think strategically when seeking the right long-term financial partner. An ideal partner comes with strong connections, relevant experience, and valuable advice—not just financial support. Here are some important tips to consider before starting fundraising efforts.

We outline how student entrepreneurs can maximize resources and opportunities both on campus and in the broader innovation and entrepreneurship (I&E) ecosystem and share insights to help early-stage innovators make the most of the I&E resources available to them.

Grant support is critical to help early-stage science and tech innovators achieve early proof of concept for their ideas. However, the number of startups applying for grants continues to grow each year. If you’re planning to apply for a grant, here are eight tips to ensure that your application stands out from the competition.

Most startups are intensely focused on getting their product to market and solving their customer’s problems. The idea of selling the company isn’t always top of the entrepreneur’s mind. Yet startups often can’t raise money from outside investors without an exit strategy. Here we highlight the most common exits and identified some important steps to take when creating an exit strategy.

Video explains the Small Business Innovation Research grants program.

Video introducing the Business Model Canvas, a key tool presented in the book, Business Model Generation by Alexander Osterwalder.

Our case study, From Idea to Impact: DayOne Response, offers a deep dive into one innovator’s journey. It highlights the nuanced experience of an early-stage innovator and her startup, and takes a retrospective look at the milestones that were accomplished along the way. It illustrates how science and technology innovation can organically lead to a startup, ultimately creating measurable impact on solving important problems. We interview the innovator, founder Tricia Compas-Markman, to detail the chapters of her trajectory.

Navigating the often bewildering landscape of grants and contracts isn’t easy—hear more from Beth Kolko, a professor and a medical device innovator, who shares her singular perspective into what each type of funding can offer a venture, and how innovators can best leverage those benefits.

Library of I-Corps course materials, which includes resources to help students prepare for and successfully complete the program.

Video library for Lean LaunchPad® around learning and teaching the methodology. Includes instructional videos and real-life examples of faculty critiquing teams during their presentations.

A critical component of innovator and entrepreneurship programs is mentorship sessions with thought leaders in scaling, technical, and clinical issues; fundraising; and marketing. But both innovators and mentors can agree: The initial mentorship meeting is just a conversation starter—innovators benefit most from expert guidance and advice through a long-term connection with mentors.

There are three types of crowdfunding: rewards, debt, and equity—read more to understand the crucial distinctions between each.