Marie Löwegren at the Sten K. Johnson Centre for Entrepreneurship is the course director for "Interdisciplinary project development" worth 7.5 credits that was run as a pilot on a half-time basis during the autumn. It attracted ten students with at least 60 credits from two faculties and across three disciplines.
"I'm hoping for students from more faculties when we run it again this year", she says.
"We conducted a few interviews with the City of Lund parking office to explore if there was a need and they were open to the idea", says Niklas Wallström who is half-way through his BSc in Business and Economics.
He chose the course because it was interdisciplinary and practical. Innovation occurs when different areas of knowledge meet, he says.
Anton Moberg, a first year Master's in physics student, and Mikael Björck who is studying systems science, are in his group. Together they produced the hardware with sensors that detects where there are available parking spots, and a mobile app. Anton Moberg has been searching for a course like this for a long time and thinks entrepreneurship should be offered early on in undergraduate degrees.
"We are quite isolated at Fysicum", he says.
Students appreciate live projects
The students also appreciated that there were live projects to choose in the course. For example, to develop a vision for an innovation workshop that another group chose to do for the City of Lund, which was also included in the examination and panel.
Marie Löwegren is satisfied with the course and the students' achievements.
"Their reports are sound and they have performed at a high level", she says.
The aim of the course, however, is not for the students to develop finished products, but that they should learn about the process of project development and how to work efficiently as a team across disciplines.
Marie Löwegren is also involved in the compulsory PhD course on knowledge in collaboration at the Faculty of Medicine. The course director is Johan Flygare, assistant head of department with responsibility for research studies at the Department of Laboratory Medicine. He is also the faculty's coordinator for external engagement in the PhD programme.
"I have had a bit of a look at other universities and it looks like we are first here in Lund with a course like this", he says.
The scene was set by “Life Science Innovation Board Skåne”, established by the previous faculty management with the aim to achieve improved collaboration between academia and business in the region. Historically, the pharmaceutical industry has a strong tradition here – but we cannot depend on this, states Johan Flygare.
"We cannot just sit back and be content with what existed before", he says and goes on to explain that when Lund businesses such as Astra, Gambro, and Draco grew large barriers arose between them and academia.
Learning how a pharmaceutical company thinks
The course on collaboration takes place over four days and the 25 doctoral students per intake consist of doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, and researchers. One aim is for them to learn about how a pharmaceutical company wanting to collaborate with academia thinks. And that they should reflect on the value of their own research in this context.
Each key term (collaboration, innovation, entrepreneurship) has its own day and the introduction takes place at Medicon Village at the Smile incubator.
"The feeling of the physical move from the hospital environment to the incubator is important", says Johan Flygare.
The day on collaboration is both theoretical and practical. Two researchers from the School of Economics and Management talk about their research on collaboration. Afterward, business owners and researchers with practical experience talk about their successes and failures. As homework for the day on innovation, the doctoral students have to prepare a two-minute "pitch" on the value of their research. The day is run at the LU Innovation premises and there the doctoral students are also trained on how to provide and receive feedback.
"It is difficult for some people – but useful", comments Johan Flygare.
Prior to the day on entrepreneurship, the doctoral students should reflect more deeply on the true value of their research. This is done together with three guest entrepreneurs at the Sten K. Johnson Centre for Entrepreneurship. The doctoral students are then examined based on their self-reflection, and receive their 1.5 credits.
Finally, the doctoral students are given the chance to meet business development managers from LU Innovation to learn about patents.
"Everyone should know the steps in the development of a product and be able to think in those terms. A seed should be sown", says Johan Flygare.
