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Students shown career path in start-ups

Christine Ritter of Accelerace presenting to nano science students in Copenhagen Science City.

Most hard-science graduates look for future jobs in large companies with established research and development divisions. Working for a small start-up might, however, be a better career boost. A recent matchmaking event for nano science students at Copenhagen Science City-partner University of Copenhagen included a presentation about starting a business or joining a start-up company.

Future job seekers met future employers

Unemployment for hard science graduates is practically unheard of in Denmark. Even so, deciding on the right career path is difficult. In order to ease the way, the University of Copenhagen NanoScience Student organisation hosted a matchmaking event on the 23rd of March. Here students got to hear about their future job-market and seven companies had a first opportunity to meet potential employees.

Venture scout speaking on start-ups

The seven speakers from various companies included Christine Ritter, who is a venture scout for Copenhagen Science City-based Accelerace. Accelerace is an organisation specialising in assisting new businesses in growing, consolidating and finding venture capital along the way. It has been active since 2010, and has helped some 500 start-up companies.

A great way to start a career

Ritter explained to the assembly, that starting you own company as well as working in someone else’s start-up is a great way to launch a career. Whether an owner or an employee, you will have a lot of influence on your own tasks, great responsibility and you may even earn a slice of the company’s future value.

Transferable skills

Working in a start-up is also likely to be more of a learning experience than working for an established business, so employees gain experiences, which are recognised and sought after in the more corporate corners of the job market.

Highly sought after graduates and students

Nano science operates on the boundaries between chemistry, physics and biology. Apart from learning the basics of all three disciplines, its students tend to learn a great deal about computational modelling and other data-intensive techniques. This makes them highly sought after, not just as graduates, but also as student employees, interns and project partners. Even for companies outside nano science research and development.

Companies from all corners of the innovation ecosystem

Apart from Accelerace talking about start-up jobs, six companies presented themselves as potential employers. These were cleantech-company Aquaporin, patent attorneys Høiberg, X-ray and neutron scattering-network LINXproject, optical fibre experts NKT Photonics, technical development and certification consultancy Danish Technological Institute and computer chip design software developers QuantumWise.

Most study programmes at University of Copenhagen and University College Copenhagen host events in Copenhagen Science City, where future employers can meet potential employees. Read more HERE.

Students looking for a start-up to join could start their search at the homepages of these Copenhagen Science City innovation environments

COBIS

Symbion

SingularityU Nordic

Dare2mansion

SCIENCE Innovation Hub

Accelerace