Dublin: Tuesday 29th September 2009: BT today announced that it is expanding the winning formula of the world-leading BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition to include a new business programme that will provide selected students with the opportunity to develop the business knowledge they need to turn their innovative ideas into commercial opportunities.
The company has devised the BT Business of Science & Technology Programme to help bridge the gap between education and business, a critical challenge that Ireland needs to overcome to achieve its ambition of a Smart Economy.
The new BT programme creates a forum for 40 students selected from the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition to be mentored by leading executives and professionals from BT, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, Bombardier, Bord Gáis Éireann, IP Innovations, UCD, TCD, Engineers Ireland and Bank of Ireland. The students will gain practical business knowledge from the mentors through a series of workshops and master-classes on subjects such as: protecting intellectual capital, global marketing, international business, stakeholder communications, innovation principles, and business strategy.
Chris Clark, CEO, BT Ireland said, “The BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition has successfully stimulated passion for science, technology, maths and engineering in thousands of students around Ireland and generated exceptionally high quality research and ideas. We wanted to take that winning formula and build on it to address both the challenges and opportunities that Ireland faces in its goal to become more competitive. We have come up with a practical solution to link business and education by collaborating with key business leaders on the island and sharing our business knowledge and expertise with the next generation of young leaders.”
Tánaiste & Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Mary Coughlan, who joined BT today at the Trinity Science Gallery to launch the new business programme, said, “The BT Business of Science & Technology Programme provides students with the opportunity to participate in a unique and intensive learning experience, where they will be encouraged to apply innovation techniques to solve a business challenge. This type of activity fosters fresh business thinking and encourages students to become entrepreneurial. I’m delighted to support this initiative and feel that it will be beneficial in enabling students to apply their scientific and technical knowledge for business purposes.”
All participating students will receive a certificate of achievement and the Minister for Education and Science, Batt O’Keeffe TD, has indicated that summer placements in higher education institutions will be made available for the top six performers in the programme.
“I’m delighted to be in a position to announce these placements which will support and encourage the research interests of the six top-performing students. The BT Business of Science and Technology Programme will allow students to mix business and science through the real-life application of their problem-solving skills. The innovative programme further strengthens the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition which has been a unique celebration of science, creativity and the curiosity of our young people for the past 45 years,” said Minister O’Keeffe.
Now in its 46th year the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition has a rich legacy that extends beyond the exhibition each January. Its alumni have gone on to achieve great successes in the worlds of business, science and technology. One example is Patrick Collison, overall winner in 2005, who went on to win second place for Ireland at the EU Young Scientists Exhibition and co-founded a technology company called Auctomatic in 2007. The company was acquired ten months later for US$5 million. Patrick later served as Director of Engineering at Live Current Media, and is currently working on his second start up.
Most recently Rhona Togher and Eimear O’Carroll, runners up in 2009, have launched a company to help sufferers of Tinnitus regain buzz free hearing. Their 2009 project ‘The Sound of Silence – An Investigation into Low Frequency Therapy for Tinnitus Sufferers,’ led to the discovery of the first scientifically tested cure for Tinnitus.
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For further press information, please contact:
Gill Madden, Fleishman-Hillard
Tel: 00353 1 6188 414 / 00 353 86 230 9070
Or
Priscilla O’Regan, Head of PR, BT Ireland
Tel: 00 353 86 633 5398
About the BT Business of Science & Technology Programme:
At the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition in January, 40 students who meet set criteria will be selected to be part of the Business of Science & Technology Programme.
These students will be given an opportunity to gain an understanding of the business of science and technology in a three day education programme in March. Through a series of workshops and master-classes mentors will offer insights and guidance on the following subjects: protecting intellectual capital, global marketing, international business, stakeholder communications, innovation principles, and business strategy. Other course elements include personality profiling, team building skills, and one on one mentor support for those interested in working in industry or starting their own companies.
The mentors include; Professor Luke O’Neill, Trinity College; Ciaran Ennis, IBM Ireland; Damian Young, Bank of Ireland; Paul Rellis, Microsoft Ireland; John Mullins, Bord Gáis Éireann; Dr. Chris Horn, Engineers Ireland; Keith Finglas, Innovation Delivery; Phil Lennard, BT Innovate and Design; Tara McMahon, IP Innovations; Martin Curley, Intel; and Michael Ryan, Bombardier.
The education programme will culminate in the students working in teams of five to develop an outline business approach to address a realistic new business start-up scenario and to present it to a judging panel at the conclusion.
All participating students will receive a certificate of achievement and the Minister for Education and Science, Batt O’Keeffe TD, has indicated that summer placements in higher education institutions will be made available for the top six performers in the programme.
