Therapy accelerator competition

The Therapy Accelerator is a competition to undertake research with a typical value of £72,000 for high growth potential companies to develop a new therapy, diagnostic or medical device. Projects run for 6 months and are based at the University of Hertfordshire and/or company premises. Our new initiative for small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) provides an opportunity to:

Boost your research and development capacity
Accelerate the development of a new therapy, diagnostic or medical device
Help undertake the fundamental research needed to launch new products and services

Compete for a 6-month fully funded project to undertake research and development into a new therapy, diagnostic or medical device. The funding includes the salary for a full-time research assistant with relevant skills and experience, access to the University’s world-class scientific facilities and dedicated supervision from a Hertfordshire expert to deliver your chosen project.

WHO CAN WE WORK WITH?

Your project has the ultimate aim of developing a new therapy, diagnostic or medical device
You qualify as an SME and have a registered business address in England
Your project is scoped to be completed within 6 months (longer projects will be considered with match funding from the company)

Applications will be looked upon favourably if:

The company is a start-up organisation, and less than 12 months old;
Your application demonstrates a clear intention to bring a product to firm and/or to market;
You demonstrate a commitment to onboarding new employees as a result of securing this intervention;

What research can we support?

Your project qualifies as Research and Development Project under the European Commission Research and Development and Innovation Framework
Projects must include research to acquire new, underlying knowledge that would support the development of a new product or service

WHY WORK WITH HERTS?

Full funding available
A project such as this is valued at £72,000 for 6 months. This is fully funded via our Hertfordshire Science Partnership programme with the option to extend with match funding from the company.
Access our team of experts
You will have a dedicated team of academic and professional staff throughout the duration of the project, including at application stage to help with scoping your project. You will have access to the University of Hertfordshire’s state-of-the-art facilities, laboratories and network of experts working in your sector to support the delivery of the project.
A dedicated postgraduate or post-doc researcher
You will be involved in the recruitment of the research assistant on the project, so you have full oversight of the process. The research assistant will be supervised by one of our academic experts and will be fully focused on delivering your project. By the end of the project they will be uniquely exposed to the product development of your business and ready for employment.

Application Process

1. Submit an Expression of Interest using the form on this webpage by the end of March.

2. Our Innovation team will assess your eligibility and arrange to discuss your project. We will introduce you to suitable academics (if required).

3. Complete the full application form.

4. Application forms will be judged by our panel and successful applicants will be informed.

5. Post-project we will need to sign a collaboration agreement and hire a suitable research assistant to complete the project which the company will be fully included in.

Express your interest