Budding entrepreneurs in Northern Ireland will be able to benefit from dedicated support in building new startups as part of a partnership between Ulster University and Catalyst.
Catalyst is a non-profit based in Northern Ireland which serves as a science and technology hub that offers workspaces, mentorship programmes and networking opportunities to local founders.
Through its new partnership, hundreds of students across the computing, engineering and built environment faculties of the University of Ulster can participate in workshops, lectures and hackathons organised by Catalyst.
The programmes will be based on the principle of Innovation Driven Enterprise.
“By integrating Innovation Driven Enterprise into the curriculum, we are helping students become creators, problem-solvers and future business leaders,” said Catalyst partner relationship manager Joe Wilson.
“This initiative is about building a strong pipeline of talent that will shape Northern Ireland’s innovation landscape for years to come.”
Emma Donnelly, enterprise officer within research and innovation at Ulster University added: “Integrating real-world entrepreneurial thinking into academic modules and providing the tools, connections and support to explore Innovation Driven Enterprise will encourage, nurture and accelerate future student and graduate startups.
“We look forward to exploring potential roll out of the UU IDE Labs across further schools and faculties in 2026 and welcome expressions of interest from our academic colleagues.”
Earlier this year Catalyst appointed Sir David Sterling, a veteran senior civil servant within Northern Ireland, to its board.
