2019 World Innovation Summit for Education(WISE) Accelerator Programme
Deadline: April 30, 2019.
The WISE Accelerator supports innovative initiatives developing solutions in education technology with high potential for scalability and positive impact.
Each year, the selected initiatives join the one-year program, during which they benefit from tailor-made supportto address challenges that hinder their growth and scaling up process. In addition, the WISE Accelerator assists the selected initiatives to connect with an international network of education stakeholders and create opportunities to share knowledge and find support among potential partners, donors and investors during international events organized by WISE. Finally, the selected initiatives will be matched with mentors who are experts in education, education technology and leaders in their field. Mentors will support the selected initiatives with advice, guidance and connections to different education and business stakeholders.
ELIGIBILITY
The WISE Accelerator supports innovative edtech initiatives that have a high potential for scalability and positive impact in education.
Initiatives addressing education challenges through the use and/or design of technology in all sectors and regions are welcome to apply. Initiatives in this particular field may cover a wide range of activities. From the conception of apps and digital games to the creation of online platforms or the design of new curricula and pedagogies integrating technology.
All for profit and non-profit edtech initiatives that are using or linking technology to their DNA are invited to apply.
Ideal candidates for the WISE Accelerator must be existing edtech initiatives at an early stage of development, with the following attributes:
- Established for at least one year;
- A growing number of beneficiaries or customers;
- A record of activities with a product or service that has been implemented and beyond proof of concept;
- Existing revenues;
- A dedicated team, with an established physical space or office;
- Deep knowledge of the market/educational context and of their beneficiaries’ or customers’ needs;
- Motivation to develop further;
- Understanding of the initiative’s current challenges.
BENEFITS
The year-long program is designed to assess and meet the initiatives’ needs as fully and precisely as possible in order to bring them to the next stage of development and scale up.
Key milestones in the 2019-2020 program are:
- Kick-off
Selected initiatives participate in the program kick-off to be held during WISE 2019 Summit in Doha, Qatar where they will benefit from workshops, masterclasses and networking opportunities. - Needs Assessment
The WISE Accelerator team will evaluate the initiatives’ priority needs and identify optimal ways to address them. - Tailor-made Support
This phase corresponds to the rollout of the mentorship and training provided by the WISE Accelerator team and partner organizations, combining both face-to-face meetings and mostly distance, personalized sessions. - Mentorship
The WISE Accelerator team will match each selected initiative with mentors selected from a WISE community of over 50,000 education stakeholders. These mentors will advise, guide and support the initiatives in their growth. Often, the mentors are CEO’s and directors of for profit and non-profit education initiatives. - Ongoing communication and visibility
The selected initiatives benefit from ongoing communication and international exposure, as well as from networking opportunities throughout the year. This takes place via WISE media platforms and international events. - Program Closing
The program closing will also take part at a WISE international event in order for the selected initiatives to benefit from further opportunities for support, networking and international visibility. In the past, the international events took part in major cities such as Paris, New York or Madrid. - Follow-up and Evaluation
During the selection process and following the conclusion of the program, the WISE Accelerator team will administer surveys to the shortlisted applicants as well as selected initiatives in order to evaluate the progress made over the year by the selected and non-selected initiatives with the aim to evaluate the impact of the program. The WISE Accelerator will collect information on the initiatives’ growth every six months for two years. At the end of two years from finishing the program, The WISE Accelerator team will collect information on the initiatives’ growth once a year. All information collected will be anonymized and collected with the permission of the initiatives.
Applications must satisfy the following requirements:
- Applicants must have an initiative related to the field of education technology.
- Initiatives must be formally constituted and must have progressed beyond proof of concept. The WISE Accelerator is not intended for new and untried ideas. Any such applications will not be considered.
- All applicants must complete, in English, the official online application form fully.
- All applicants must submit a short 3 minutes video pitch by submitting a YouTube link. During the pitch, they will explain their edtech solution, the problem they are tackling, who their beneficiaries are, their progress so far and why they are applying for the WISE Accelerator.
- Contact details and complete information on two references (e.g. former donors, local governments, other organizations, etc.) must be included in all applications. Valid referees include individuals from organizations who can comment knowledgeably on the activity of the initiative.
Representatives of shortlisted initiatives will be contacted for a call with the WISE Accelerator team. The WISE Accelerator and the Committee reserve the right to ask for clarification or complementary information or documentation from the applicants.
Selected initiatives will delegate a representative who will personally engage with the WISE Accelerator team and mentors, participate and represent the initiative in WISE international events and conferences over the course of the year.
OFFICIAL LINK
