SET University to Launch Innovation Hub Empowering Women-Led Startups

The university is already working on building a platform to support students in developing their own businesses — with a special emphasis on women-founded startups. As part of the “Knowledge Rise: Advancing Sustainable Blue-Green Economies via Deep Tech – Innovation Capacity Building in Higher Education” project funded by the EIT, the SET University team held a strategic meeting on July 18 dedicated to launching the university’s Innovation Hub.

The meeting was attended by
– Oksana Zamora, Grant Projects Manager, Erasmus Programme Coordinator, and Advisor to the Rector on Internationalisation;
– Yevheniia Klepa, Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship and future leader of the Hub;
– Nataliia Paraniak, Manager of Master’s Educational Programmes;
– Sofiia Dobryden, Coordinator of Educational Programmes;
– Anna Sukhina, Manager for Educational Project Engagement.

During the brainstorming session, the team identified key challenges, opportunities, and directions for fostering a startup culture among SET University students with the goal of providing comprehensive support through the future Hub. In particular, the team decided to conduct a series of in-depth interviews with Master’s students to explore what knowledge and practical aspects of startup development they feel are lacking in their studies, given that this component is already a strong focus at SET.

Based on the findings from these interviews and ongoing collaboration across all university departments, a concept for the creation and development of the Innovation Hub with a focus on women-led startups will be prepared. An additional internal focus group is planned for August–September 2025.

Program is supported by the European Union through the EIT HEI Initiative as part of the “Knowledge Rise: Advancing Sustainable Blue-Green Economies via Deep Tech – Innovation Capacity Building in Higher Education” project within the broader CloudEARTHi initiative, coordinated by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT).