• McGill student teams of 2-4 people.

• Lead Applicant:

  • Must be a McGill student (undergraduate, graduate, or postdoc) enrolled full-time (all faculties are eligible)

  • The lead applicant must be returning as a full or part-time student for at least one more semester (for example, if you are applying for the Fall TechAccel Program the lead applicant must be returning in the Winter semester, and if you are applying for the Winter or Summer TechAccel Program they must be returning in the Fall semester)

• To be eligible for the TechAccel project funding, at least one team member must be enrolled in a faculty* that is STEM-related at McGill University. (* Students of McGill School of Continuing Studies are eligible to receive mentorship through the TechAccel program but are not eligible for TechAccel project funding.)

• A team that already has an established business model with recurring revenues is not eligible.

• A team that has prior funding of over $25,000 is not eligible.

Free Resources Available Here!

• TechAccel Program (Fall 2024 Cohort): Application deadline: September 9, 2024, 11:59PM (ET) 

• You will need to attach the following completed template to your application. 

  •   TechAccel Startup Venture Information

If you have any questions and/or wish to have your application reviewed before submission, please book a one-on-one Advising and Coaching session with us!

• An online information session will take place on September 4, 2024, 5:00PM (ET) – Register here!

• As a team, you are expected to work minimum 4 hours/week on your project/venture during the TechAccel Program.

• Depending on the progress/stage of your project/idea, you and your team member(s) will be spending the time on market research, competitor analysis, and stakeholder interviews.

• The TechAccel Program is an experiential learning program, and the goal is to improve students’ innovation and entrepreneurship skills. Most of the ventures that applied and got accepted into the TechAccel Program are in their ideation and validation stage, which is still a long way before incorporation. That being said, the following startups went through the TechAccel Program:

  • 2nite: www.2nite.app

  • Acrylic Robotics: www.acrylicrobotics.ca

  • BaseDash: www.basedash.com

  • Brighten Health: www.brighten-health.com

  • LFAnt Medical: www.lfantmedical.com

  • Neat: neat.run

  • Reeva Tech Solutions: www.reevatechsolutions.com

  • Stocate: www.stocate.com

  • Tailor: www.tailorapply.com

  • Tulsi.farm: www.tulsi.farm

• Evaluation Criteria:

  1. Level of technological and business innovation. Does the team have sufficient competitive advantage/differentiation from similar ideas?

  2. Educational potential/experiential learning opportunity for students. Will the TechAccel program contribute to the team acquiring new business and technical skills?

  3. Clearly defined and validated problem. Is the idea/solution appropriate for the problem identified?

  4. Plan to build and test an MVP to try and achieve product-market fit. Have appropriate milestones been identified in order to advance the idea toward a viable business/solution?

  5. Level of market and impact potential.

• During the TechAccel Program, you can request the TechAccel Project Funding of up to $2,500 by submitting your most up-to-date Startup Venture Information and the Budget Milestones, Stakeholder Analysis, and Gantt Chart to their assigned TechAccel mentor, and the funding request will be assessed and evaluated based on your project progress in terms of the problem validation, market analysis, and stakeholder interview. 

• The Fall 2024 TechAccel program runs for 12 weeks (4 months) from October 1, 2024 to December 20, 2024

• Reporting: A progress and final report are due to the Engine's associate director and the team's assigned mentor showing progress, outcomes/impacts/learnings, use of funds, and next steps.

• Mentorship: A TechAccel mentor will be assigned to the TechAccel teams to help progress the project and accelerate the learnings for the team, under the following Mentoring Guidelines and Commitment.

• Empowered Startups: Each team is expected to complete the first 5 training modules and corresponding activities. Teams could be exempt from completing the Empowered Startups training modules depending on their previous experience with the Lean Startup Methodology.

• Cohort Check-Ins: Every 2-3 weeks there will be group check-ins to see how progress is being made and to discuss the completed Empowered Startup modules. At least one member from each team is expected to participate in each check-in. 

• Outreach Activities: Teams must be willing to assist the Faculty of Engineering and the McGill Engine in outreach activities pertaining to technological innovation and entrepreneurship.

• Giving back: The McGill Engine does not take equity in student companies. There is an expectation, but no requirement, that participating students will make a non-binding charitable pledge to McGill Engine aimed at sustaining the activities of the McGill Engine Centre and helping the next generation of student innovators and entrepreneurs that the Centre supports. Funding is not conditional on a student signing a pledge.

• You need to complete and submit all the required deliverables (progress and final reports, surveys at the beginning and at the end of the program)

• Your assigned TechAccel mentor needs sign off your engagement in the TechAccel Program

• Your team pitch your project/venture at the TechAccel Showcase

• Empowered Startups Platform is an intuitive digital platform that delivers comprehensive training, seamlessly paired with optimized, easy-to-use tools and mentor touchpoints, to transform your TechAccel idea into a validated business model. This startup incubation platform is used by universities, startup organizations, and research and development facilities around the world.

• The platform has 6 online training modules covering the following topics:

  1. Introduction to Lean Startup Methodology

  2. Building Your Lean Canvas

  3. Business Archetypes and Traction Models 

  4. Customer/Problem Interviews

  5. Validate Your Solution

  6. Venture Report, Pitch & Program Summary

• Acceptance emails are usually sent out within 1 week after the application deadline.

• Yes, we recommend having your application reviewed by the Engine's Associate Director before submitting it. Book your appointment today.

• Teams accepted into the TechAccel program will automatically remain in the TechAccel cohort(s) until the completion of their project/venture.