Student Entrepreneurship Grant (STUD-ENT)

Are you students at a Norwegian university or university college with a business idea and ambitions to start a company? Have you explored whether there is a need or market for your idea? Have you formed a team that wants to develop it? You can apply for a grant to develop and commercialise your solution.
To studenter sitter i en trapp
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Type of service
Call for proposals
Target group
Students planning to start their own business
Application deadline
Expired
How much
Up to NOK 1 million
Application type
Student Entrepreneurship Grant (STUD-ENT)

  • Recent graduates from Norwegian universities and university colleges who aspire to start their own company based on the knowledge they gained during their studies.
  • The company must have a team of students. The team must have a project manager who meets the requirements below. Together, the students must own at least 80 per cent of the company.
  • The project manager must either be enrolled in education or have completed their education no more than 12 months before the application deadline. Eligible education includes a master's programme, a six-year professional degree programme or a doctoral programme.
  • The project manager is studying for:
    • Master's level: submit the Master's thesis before the project starts
    • professional degree level: you must have completed at least four years before the project starts
    • PhD level: provide confirmation from the degree-awarding institution that you can carry out the STUD-ENT project alongside your studies. You must also provide written confirmation from the institution that you own the project's intellectual property rights (for example, a waiver or licence).

The scheme aims to allocate 40 per cent of its funding to projects led by women.

You must have a company with an organisation number to apply for this scheme. When you apply, you may use a sole proprietorship (ENK) or a limited company (AS) registered in the Register of Business Enterprises. Before the project starts, the company must be registered as a limited company (AS) that meets the target group requirements and the requirements set out in the state aid rules under GBER Article 22.

STUD-ENT supports innovative start-ups with proven market acceptance and strong growth potential. Projects with both longer and shorter routes to market may qualify for funding.

Innovative idea

By an innovative idea, we mean that you have identified a need or problem in a market that does not currently have a satisfactory solution. You must demonstrate a sound understanding of how the market works and present the products or services currently available. You must also make a strong case for how your business idea solves the problem more effectively and explain how the new solution will be positioned in the market. You must describe this in a competitor analysis.

Documented market acceptance

We consider market acceptance to be documented when customers, users, investors or business partners confirm that the problem you have identified is worth solving.

We consider market acceptance to be documented when customers, users, investors or business partners are willing to contribute resources to the project's further development. These resources may include development partnerships, access to test groups or testing facilities, advance payments or invested capital. You must document their interest through letters of intent or similar agreements and attach them to your application.

Strong growth potential 

We consider your business to have significant growth potential when you can explain how you plan to commercialise your solution. This means showing how your product or service will contribute to a profitable business model with national or international potential. You need to demonstrate a strong understanding of the market and the customer groups you want to reach. You must also describe the size of the market and how you plan to reach it.

Projects that have not yet achieved documented market acceptance can apply to us for Startup grant 1.

The project should include activities related to:

  • further develop the product or service in close collaboration with customers, users or other partners. The activities must aim to increase the TRL from its current level.
  • ensure that you develop technology or a solution that meets your customers' real needs. The activities must aim to increase the BRL from its current level.
  • strengthen the core team's overall ability to deliver. Examples include taking part in accelerator programmes, networking events or trade fairs.
  • make your company investor-ready. Attracting private capital is crucial to your success. We will therefore give weight to strong strategies for securing access to capital, as well as activities to develop and implement them.

  • The maximum grant per company is NOK 1 million.
  • The grant must not exceed the amount needed to carry out the project.
  • The grant may cover up to 100 per cent of approved costs, so you do not need to provide your own funding. In line with our other startup funding schemes, the project must have a clear objective to make your company investment-ready during the project period.

We pay 50 per cent of the grant in advance when the project starts. Once you have completed 50 per cent of the project, you must submit an evaluation and financial statement to us before we pay a further 30 per cent. We pay the remaining 20 per cent once you have completed the project and we have approved the final report and the audited project accounts from an auditor or authorised accountant.

  • You have clearly described the market and its potential. You have defined your target audience and know how to adapt your solution to meet the customer need.
  • The need or problem you aim to solve is clearly described, and you must provide evidence of market acceptance.
  • The project we support must be innovative and have the potential to create significant value in Norway.
  • You must be able to communicate your idea and what makes the project unique in an initial outline of a scalable business model.
  • You have described potential competitors and alternative products in the market.
  • The applicant can demonstrate relevant expertise or experience for the project and show that the core team has the ability to deliver.
  • You must describe the project objectives and how you plan to achieve them.
  • The project must aim to attract smart capital and active ownership, with plans and activities that support this.
  • Projects that receive funding must be able to help develop an entrepreneurial culture at the educational institution.
  • We will prioritise projects that have a clear positive impact on the environment and/or society.

Your application must include a project with clearly defined activities that help achieve the goals for technology development (TRL) and business development (BRL). The budget must only include costs necessary to carry out the planned activities.

Read more about our criteria for awarding grants and what we look for in an application.

Documents you must include with your application

  • Documentation of market acceptance
  • Collaboration agreement with the educational institution
  • Agreement with a commercial mentor
  • Operating budget for 3–5 years
  • Financial statements

You must have entered into a collaboration agreement with your educational institution and a commercial mentor. You must attach both agreements to your application.

Collaboration agreement with the educational institution and academic mentor

The agreement must confirm that the educational institution supports the project and set out how it will contribute during the project period to help make the project a success.

The agreement must include the name and contact details of an employee at the educational institution who will act as an academic mentor. The academic mentor must be affiliated with an academic community relevant to the project, and this connection must help reduce technological or other critical risks in the project.

The agreement must also explain how else the educational institution will support the project. This support may include access to laboratory facilities, testing equipment, office space and similar resources.

The agreement must also show that the students commit to sharing their experiences and lessons learned with the educational institution during and after the project.

Suggested agreement template

Commercial mentor

The project must engage at least one commercial mentor from the business community, such as an industry expert, serial entrepreneur or investor. The mentor must complement the core team with relevant industry and market experience. They should also understand the project's critical tasks and help strengthen the team's ability to deliver the project.

Suggested template for an agreement with a commercial mentor

We use Business Readiness Level (BRL) and Technology Readiness Level (TRL) when assessing projects and applications. Before you start writing your application, we encourage you to watch this short introductory video: Management tool for technology development

We offer a range of other online courses you can take whenever it suits you.

Get in touch with kundesupport@innovasjonnorge.no

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Annen offentlig støtte

Det skal opplyses i søknaden hvorvidt det er søkt eller vil bli søkt annen offentlig støtte til prosjektet. Vår støtteutmåling baserer seg også på en samlet vurdering av hvor mye offentlig støtte som må til for å utløse prosjektet.

Ved fastsettelse av tilskuddsbeløpet legger derfor vi til grunn at det ikke mottas annen offentlig støtte, herunder Skattefunn, enn det som er oppgitt i søknaden. Dette gjelder støtte til finansiering av de prosjektkostnadene som vi har lagt til grunn for beregning av vårt tilskudd (støtteberettigede kostnader). I tilfelle slik annen offentlig støtte, herunder SkatteFunn, likevel blir mottatt etter at vårt tilbud er gitt, og til dekning av de samme kostnadene, vil tilskuddet fra oss kunne bli redusert tilsvarende eller bortfalle.

Dette er ikke til hinder for at bedriften kan motta annen offentlig støtte til andre prosjektkostnader enn de vi har lagt til grunn.

Read english version: Grants for Student Entrepreneurship (STUD-ENT)
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