Dalhousie University has opened applications for the third cohort of its Ready2Launch accelerator for Atlantic Canadian university students and recent graduates looking to commercialize their academic research.

The three-month program for technology-based ventures will be offered virtually again this year and run from June 6 to Aug. 26, with a final pitch day on Sept. 22. Undergraduate, graduate and PhD students, as well as postdoctoral fellows, can apply.

“This program is an outstanding opportunity for founders to validate their business model and approach customers and investors with confidence,” said Spencer Giffin, Dalhousie’s Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, in a press release.

“With facilitators from MIT, the participants are getting exposure and learning from the masters in the craft of innovation driven entrepreneurship to solve global problems.”

Ready2Launch teaches customer discovery skills and helps coach participants through the process of finding product-market fit. The program typically accepts 10 teams, which will receive $15,000 apiece and have access to mentorship, personalized training and skill clinics. Participants will also have the chance to win another $10,000 at the September pitch competition. This video explains the program. 

Last year, the competition’s first place winner was Drinkable Water, a Halifax team developing a graphene-based sensor to monitor water quality, which bagged a $5,000 prize. Runner-up Formula Consulting, which makes software for the concrete industry, won $3,000.

Ready2Launch is based on the delta v Educational Accelerator at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

More information and an application form can be found here. The deadline is April 15.