i-Teams is a fantastic opportunity for researchers in the early stages of their careers to widen their experience outside of academia, acquire new skills, and increase their commercial awareness.
The programme is open to postdoctoral researchers, postgraduate students, and masters students from UEA and all other Norwich Research Park institutions, as well as students from Norwich University of the Arts.
Participants work in small teams together with industry mentors, creatively planning business impact for real innovations developed at Norwich Research Park or heritage projects with regional organisations.
In previous years, participants have worked on projects with organisations including Adnams, the Broads Authority, Gressenhall Farm and Workhouse, and The History of Advertising Trust.
The teams have produced commercialisation plans for Norwich Research Park innovations including Insect Detection, Microplastic Detection and Movetech.
The programme runs for up to 12 weeks between January and March/April, with group sessions every Tuesday evening from 6pm to 9pm (at the latest). This will include workshops and presentations by entrepreneurs and industry experts. We expect that in 2023 some of these sessions will be run online but most will be in person. In addition, you will be expected to put in at least four hours of individual work each week. The programme culminates in a final presentation to colleagues, business leaders and employers.
i-Teams 2023
Applications are now open for i-Teams 2023. Please click the button below to fill out an application form. For any queries or issues, please email iteams@uea.ac.uk.
Applications close e.o.d 5th December 2022.
If you would like to find out more, please come along to one of our information sessions, these are being held online and in person this year. If you are a UEA student, you can click the link and book on via MyCareerCentral. If you are not at UEA, please email iteams@uea.ac.uk and we will send you joining instructions.
Wednesday 2nd November 1-2 (Online – you will be sent a link to join when you book)
Tuesday 15th November 12-1 (In person)
Tuesday 22nd November 4-5 (Online – you will be sent a link to join when you book)
We look forward to meeting you!
Here is what some of our past participants had to say about their i-Teams experience.
“Through my participation in i-Teams, I gained huge insight into how my academic skills can be effectively applied in the world of business.”
Elizabeth Mossman, i-Teams 2019
“My time spent as a researcher on one of UEA's first ever Heritage i-Teams projects not only pulled me out of this academic bubble, but served as a crucial reminder of the importance of collaborating with others.”
Samuel Foster, i-Teams 2018
"In my experience, participating in i-Teams is the closest thing to working for an innovative company. I now work in a fast-paced biotech where the projects and teams are very interdisciplinary and the projects are driven by strict timelines."
Elliot Lawrence, i-Teams 2017
“I really enjoyed participating in i-Teams and would definitely recommend it to everyone. I learnt about how to approach contacts within professional companies and hold successful conversations about the project I was working on. I had never done anything like this before, so it was a great experience of the business side of innovation and entrepreneurship. This furthered my confidence and skills in networking and presenting under formal situations which are good skills to have for future work.”
Jessica Watt, i-Teams 2016
"For me i-Teams was very exciting and useful because the project was a taste of the real world, totally different from academia. I would highly recommend i-Teams for every PhD student."
Nicolle Som, i-Teams 2015