Many organizations want to create impactful change by implementing innovative ideas within or outside their own structure. The Tesla minor helps organizations with these challenges, whether you are a start-up or an organization with a long history. Being embedded in and funded by the Faculty of Science of University of Amsterdam, the Tesla minor is uniquely positioned to help you create a sturdy foundation for projects, prioritizing positive impact and scientific validity. Are you an organization that has a new project in mind, a technical or social innovation to design, or a start-up to be developed? Then the Tesla minor might be an interesting option for you.
What can we do for you?
We believe that a fresh, critical view from a group of top-performing science master students who are eager to learn can be extremely helpful for a project or idea.
An interdisciplinary team of two to three students will work for 5 months, 40 hours per week on the Tesla minor, of which 24 hours of their time is dedicated to work on your project. Students are guided by experienced consultants, coaches and academic supervisors. Next to that, the students receive trainings on topics such as project management, efficient meetings and communication skills, to support their work on the project and their personal development.
Students are challenged to work on the practical implementation of their advice, combining scientific analyses, literature research, fieldwork activities, expert interviews and stakeholder meetings. This may for instance lead to designing a social business model, implementing a pilot, or performing a life cycle analysis.
What projects do we take?
We look for partners that share our vision and are motivated to support our students develop themselves to the full. We look for projects that:
- Have a clear positive societal impact (e.g. sustainability, health, equity).
- Are complex and interesting enough to be worked on by three science students for 5 months. The exact scope of the project will be determined by the students and supervisors together with you.
An overview of previous projects can be found here.
How do we work together?
- The students work as independent consultants and have their own office space available at Startup Village, Amsterdam Science Park.
- Before the start of the minor, we ask you to provide a short description of the project’s aims, guidelines and desired deliverables.
- During the project, the students work with you to ensure the project develops in the preferred direction.
- The students are supervised on a day-to-day basis by Tesla tutors, and trained by external trainers on topics such as project management, efficient meetings and communication skills. An academic staff member of the science faculty of the UvA supervises and safeguards the scientific content of the project.
What to expect from the Tesla Minor
- Two to three students work 40 hours per week on the Tesla minor, of which 24 hours of their time is dedicated to work on your project.
- The students conduct research based on scientific methods and applicable to the challenge you provide.
- At the end, students at least deliver a final presentation and a final report in which they present their outcomes. We stimulate students to create actionable outcomes, which often leads to additional deliverables, such as a prototype or a pilot project.
- The students do their best to complete the project within the given time, meeting your organization’s wishes as well as the requirements of the Tesla supervisor and the academic supervisor.
- The first aim of the project is the students’ learning process.
What we expect from you
- Availability for bi-weekly contact with students during the Tesla minor to discuss project progress. This is from the third week of February to the second week of July.
- Attendance at the Project Proposal presentation and the Final presentation.
- Providing feedback on plans and actions students take in the project.
Participation fee
The Tesla minor is funded by University of Amsterdam. Our standard participation fee is 3000 euros, which is used by the students to organize trainings, lectures and activities in addition to the regular Tesla program
We prioritize selection of projects based on student learning opportunities and societal impact. If our standard fee exceeds your organization’s budget, we are open to discuss a fee that is feasible for you.
What our partners say
“TNO commissioned a complex and relevant societal issue to the Tesla students of 2020. Three students worked with great enthusiasm on the question: “What factors limit the implementation of wood construction with CLT on a larger scale in the Netherlands?”. The students consulted a complete range of stakeholders and performed a thorough literature research, resulting in a solid advice on how we should continue further with this topic”- Wim van der Poel, TNO
Curious?
We would like to hear more about your ideas and explore if we can together come up with an interesting project for both you and the students.
Please contact us at minortesla-science@uva.nl for more information, questions or ideas.
Some of our partners
