I-Corps Application

Apply to WSU I-Corps Spring 2021 Cohort!

Expectations for the I-Corps Teams

I-Corps Teams must be prepared to commit 8-10 hours per week beyond their usual academic responsibilities.

Teams must conduct interviews with potential customers and industry insiders to help refine their business ideas.

All members of a Team must attend weekly I-Corps evening meetings online over the four-week period, where they will provide updates and:

  • Discuss how the Team’s business model changed due to new information gained from customer discussions in the prior week.
  • Resolve any questions from video assignments designed to teach the LEAN business model canvas method.
  • Get feedback from other teams and assess the business model canvases of other teams in a dynamic group learning environment.

Applicant Requirements

Faculty, students, staff, alumni from WSU and residents of the Palouse may apply. Applicants are not required to have previous experience in business or entrepreneurship.

Individual applicants will be paired into I-Corps teams. WSU I-Corps teams typically consist of 2-4 members. Visit the Team Roles page for a detailed explanation of each of the roles.

  • At least one person with a business idea or is capable of performing assessment of an idea adopted by the team (“the lead”).
  • At least one student, alumni, or post-doc interested in conducting entrepreneurial research and directing group efforts (“the entrepreneurial lead”)- This is optional for teams not associated with the university
  • One or more complementary members with skills that will add value to the team’s ability to assess the technological or business potential of the idea.

The WSU I-Corps directors will put members into teams in order to match participants with different experiences.

I-Corps is available at all WSU campuses as well as non-WSU participants via Zoom Conference App.

For Those Interested in Mentoring a Team

Since there are no new business-relevant facts inside the academic building, I-Corps Teams need to get outside and actually talk to customers, suppliers, channel partners and domain experts, and gather real-world data for each part of their business model canvas.

This is where you and your expertise can help the next generation of Coug entrepreneurs succeed: help them network, teach them how to send email, make phone calls and do appropriate customer discovery. And open your Rolodex to whatever level you feel comfortable.

Take a look and see the great projects, both student and faculty led, that we will be taking through the first stages of LEAN business modeling.

Have Questions?

Please contact Asa Brown, Program Director, WSU I-Corps Site at asa.brown@wsu.edu if you have questions regarding teaming for I-Corps.