Bama Technology Commercialization Fellowship

The Bama Technology Commercialization Fellowship is a one-semester fellowship offered by the Office for Economic & Business Engagement to train and prepare outstanding graduate and undergraduate students for the technology commercialization career field.

The Bama Technology Commercialization Fellowship is designed to provide students with experiential learning, mentorship, and training necessary to learn how to transform scientific inventions and discoveries into new products or startups through Bama IP Commercialization Academy.

The fellowship program selects highly qualified and committed participants to engage directly in the academy that utilizes intellectual properties (IPs) invented by researchers at The University of Alabama.

The Bama Technology Commercialization Fellowship Program is looking for graduate and undergraduate students from a range of disciplines who are passionate about technology commercialization. Ideal candidates will:

Be highly motivated and interested in commercializing university technologies.
Demonstrate strong collaboration, communication, and teamwork skills.
Possess excellent technical and business skills.
Exhibit leadership and decision-making abilities.
Show a willingness to learn about a variety of topics, including technology commercialization, entrepreneurship, and university research commercialization ecosystem.

Award

$3,000 (distributed at the end of the program) will be provided to each awarded Fellow.
Number of possible awardees: 9
Fellowship term: September–December, 2024

Application Process

Application Deadline: Wednesday, August 28, 2024, 11:59 PM
Finalist Interviews: September 3-6
Selection & Notification: September 16

Application Requirements

Complete the online application form
Cover letter (no more than 1 page)
Resume
A Letter of Recommendation from a UA faculty, staff, or instructor

Candidate Requirements

Currently enrolled as a UA student
Open to undergraduate students in all majors. Preference will be given to those with STEM and Business-related backgrounds.
Open to graduate students (Graduate students holding an assistantship may concurrently hold a Bama Technology Commercialization Fellowship; the Bama Technology Commercialization Fellowship is also open to students with partial graduate assistantships or who do not have graduate assistantships. The time commitment is expected to be 10 hours/week while also recognizing that school and academics come first as needed. Note that the Bama Technology Commercialization Fellowship does not have a tuition scholarship or health insurance attached to it.)
Must complete fellowship term before graduation.
Ability to attend weekly training (on Fridays, 1pm – 3pm) in the AIME Building; and a one-day event on Thursday, 11/14/24, 6-8 PM at The EDGE Incubator and Accelerator (at 2627 10th Ave, Tuscaloosa, AL 35401).

Fellow Responsibilities

Attendance at the Bama IP Commercialization Academy training /workshops
A weekly team meeting
A weekly mentor meeting
Customer discovery on their own
Attendance at the final pitch event
Finalize the business model
Provide a final report and presentation

Benefits to Student Fellows

Professional recognition and increased visibility for students who are interested in STEM, technology commercialization, and business/entrepreneurship career paths
Opportunities for fellows to receive systematic technology commercialization training through experiential learning including NSF I-Corps methodology
Opportunities for fellows to involve in transdisciplinary STEM-related inventions that have real-world impacts
Opportunities for fellows to interact with UA inventors, business mentors, peer fellows, and industrial partners
Fellows may become eligible to work in the formed startups (a separate application required)

Fellowship Appointment vs. Employee Relationship

Fellowships are grants awarded to an individual in support of academic pursuits. If appointed as a Fellow, the individual is not considered a UA employee, and therefore, does not receive employee healthcare or fringe benefits.
Generally, under the U.S. tax laws, scholarships, fellowships, or grants are tax free to the extent the funds are used for qualified expenses.

Bama Technology Commercialization Fellowship Application

Questions?

Contact Dr. Ying Qin at yqin@ua.edu.

Footnotes:

Generally, under the tax laws, scholarships, fellowships, or grants are tax free to the extent the funds are used for qualified expenses.

Qualified expenses include:

Tuition and fees required to enroll at or attend an eligible educational institution; and
Course-related expenses, such as fees, books, supplies, and equipment that are required for the courses at the eligible educational institution.

Any portion of a scholarship, fellowship, or grant used for nonqualified expenses such as room and board, travel, research, medical insurance, optional equipment, etc. could be included in your taxable income for the year. However, as a general rule, UA is not required to withhold taxes on these amounts.*

Recipients of such funds should make a determination as to whether the funds are taxable, taking into account all such amounts received for the year. The taxability of scholarships, fellowships, and/or grants are based upon each person’s individual facts and circumstances. To the extent that you determine that a portion or all of the funds are not subject to tax, you should retain receipts, cancelled checks, and other documents to show the total amount of your qualified expenses. Additionally, students receiving financial aid should notify Student Financial Aid to determine whether a fellowship award will affect your aid.

*See: https://taxoffice.ua.edu/scholarships-fellowships-grants/