RAU Accel is the first university business accelerator launched in Romania

Magda Purice Posted On March 22, 2021

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The Institute of Excellence in Entrepreneurship (idEA) launched RAU Accel, the first university business accelerator in Romania, within the Romanian-American University in Bucharest.

This month, idEA will launch two more such accelerators, USH Accel and UMFCD Accel, accelerators where students from Spiru Haret University and Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Bucharest will learn from successful entrepreneurs, specialists and experts from various fields how to lay the foundations of your own business in IT, technology, fintech, blockchain, responsible business, medtech or e-health.

University acceleration programs offer a modern curriculum, mentors, experts and investors from different business fields in order to help young people have the best first experience in entrepreneurship. It should be noted that, although it is a pilot project, the accelerator developed at the University of Medicine has already received the high support of the Romanian presidency, which has confirmed the presence on board the program of the presidential adviser, Loreta Păun.

The creator of these programs, the Institute of Excellence in Entrepreneurship (idEA), founded in 2020 by a team with extensive experience in startup acceleration programs but also in investments, is an NGO dedicated to entrepreneurship that aims to educate, promote and facilitate access to financing of Romanian startups.

idEA aims to develop the entrepreneurial ecosystem and accelerate startups in a modern and efficient system. Among the most well-known idEA projects is Commons accel, one of the startup acceleration programs with the best results in recent years.

“IdEA aims to make a positive impact in the area of young entrepreneurs through entrepreneurship training and education. We encourage the growth of the Romanian entrepreneurial ecosystem, the connection with other relevant stakeholders, the transfer of know-how, experience and resources, as well as the access to financing. ” says Matei Dumitrescu, the founder of idEA .Matei Dumitrescu is known in the entrepreneurial world as an expert in business acceleration, he has been part of the Investment-Ready Program in Vienna since 2013, being then co-director at the Founder Institute, and in 2019 setting up one of the most appreciated acceleration programs. for startups, Commons Accel. Last but not least Matei Dumitrescu, is known in the investment environment as a partner in Roca X, as well as vice president of Techangels.

The participants in these three programs are promised that upon completion of the accelerator programs, they will have a clearer vision of their business, a well-structured and organized pitch, a validated and profitable business model, and a proper marketing strategy.

In addition, they have at their disposal office spaces for carrying out the activity, dedicated mentors, experts in the field, but meetings with potential clients or investors will be mediated. In fact, all these programs will end with a DemoDay where the best businesses created during the acceleration period will be presented to the public. The team that will deal with the training of students enrolled in university accelerators includes well-known names like Peter Barta or Dragoș Nicolaescu, and the organization will be coordinated by Diana Ciobanete, iDea vice president, Smart Impact Capital Partner and director of Commons Accel Participants will receive guidance from over 30 top mentors, who responded positively to the mission to educate a new generation of entrepreneurs for Romania.

Among the first to confirm their involvement are Gregoire Vigreux, president of La French Tech, Philip Choban, founder of Telios, Florin Grozea, founder of Mocapp, Andrei Dudoiu, founder of Seedblink, Cristina Daianu, CEO of Dentons, Cristian Negrutiu, CEO of Sparking Capital, Alexandru Bogdan , CEO Roca X or Daniela Șerban, founder of ARIR.

The first inspirational session already took place on Thursday, March 18, for the students of the Romanian-American University and brought before the participants real entrepreneurs, going through acceleration programs after which they built successful businesses and whose experience serves as a model for future entrepreneurs .