Gateway to Innovation

You have the business or tech idea of a lifetime. All you need now is funding. And employees. And customers. And expert advice. (This list is getting daunting.)

You could pick up the phone and start dialing wildly, or survey all the University of Maryland websites devoted to facets of innovation and entrepreneurship. 

Now, however, you can head straight to the Innovation Gateway, the university’s new digital portal to all of the I&E resources available on campus. Supported by the Division of Research, the site aims provide a menu of concierge services (though it won’t pick up your dry cleaning).

Visitors can start by identifying what kind of stakeholder they are—students, alumni, faculty, startups, industry or investors—or by a general search to make a match for their needs, whether licensing technology or partnering with the university. The site offers dozens of options, from the Do Good Accelerator to the Ed Snider Center for Enterprise and Markets to the Maryland Momentum Fund. 

“Depending on where you are in your entrepreneurial journey, you may need to talk to someone about whether that idea is worth pursuing, or maybe later you need financing or funding. It just depends,” said Sammy Popat, campus connector and Discovery District manager in the Office of Innovation and Economic Development. “People can feel overwhelmed—they don’t really know where to begin. We want to make it easier. We are here for the students and faculty, but we also want to make it easier for people externally to engage with us proactively.”

How familiar are you with the resources at Maryland supporting entrepreneurship and innovation? Take this quiz to find out: