FounderHer Fund

Have an idea you’re ready to bring to life? The FoundHer Fund, in partnership with Converge and the Scottish Funding Council is designed to give women founders at the University of Edinburgh the boost they need to succeed. Whether you're a student, staff member of alumna, this fund can help grow your idea into a real venture. 
Women remain underrepresented in entrepreneurship and early-stage funding and this fund aims to help close that gap by giving women founders the financial boost they need to get started.

About the FoundHer Fund

There are two ways to win support: 

• Monetary prize (£5,000 prize pot) - open to students, staff and alumnae. You can win a share of the £5,000 prize fund to grow your ideas.
• Expert fund (£5,000) - open to students and alumnae. Two winners will each receive £2,500 to work with an expert consultant of their choosing. 

Apply with either: A 5-minute video (recommended) or a short-written application

Deadline: Friday 16th February at 12noon. 
 

Who can apply?

All University of Edinburgh students, recent graduates (within two years of graduation) and staff

Applicants currently on a visa must ensure that their visa allows them to engage in business activity, or that they have a plan to transition to a visa that allows this within the next 12 months. Those on a Student Visa typically cannot engage in business activity, so please check your visa conditions and guidance from the Student Immigration Service before applying.

Funding conditions

Winners must:

• Spend the funds within 12 months
• Provide a short breakdown of how the funds were used
• Attend three advisory meetings with an Edinburgh Innovations business adviser (the first of these must be booked ahead of the funding can be issued)
• Should you win funding as part of this programme, a UK bank account is preferred for all payments. Requests to use non-UK bank accounts may be considered on a case-by-case basis and may be subject to additional checks or processing time.