The role of universities in driving new business starts

The journey from identifying a promising idea to building a thriving business relies on many components, such as talent, mentorship, capital, access to infrastructure, and connections to industry. As the Q4 2013 Index demonstrated, universities are in a unique position to aggregate these components to support the creation of new companies. Higher education institutions attract top talent to the state, offer vital programs, and cultivate valuable relationships with leading executives and venture capital firms.
To gauge the performance of Illinois universities in facilitating start-ups, the Illinois Science & Technology Coalition (ISTC) conducted its first annual University Entrepreneurship Survey, which examines the role of educational institutions in launching new ventures by supporting research, technology transfer, and entrepreneurship centers. More...