Technology Transfer Professional Development Program
The Center for Technology Transfer and Commercialization at Vanderbilt University has a technology transfer internship and is currently looking for interested applicants.
Technology transfer is the practice of transferring inventions from the research lab to the marketplace to benefit the public and is an interesting blend of science, business, and law. The internship begins with an instructional phase that provides the framework of technology transfer including its history, basics of invention evaluation, intellectual property protection, and commercialization/licensing strategies. Once completed, each intern is paired with licensing professionals in our office to apply those skills to help evaluate, protect and commercialize real-world Vanderbilt inventions. Due to the nature of technology transfer, this program exposes the interns to a unique blend of disciplines and a variety of projects that a technology transfer officer might face each day.
This is an excellent opportunity for students to explore a career that requires broad scientific expertise, business insight, and legal acumen to convert basic research into practical applications.
Internship Requirements
- Enrolled at Vanderbilt University
- Undergraduates:
- Entering their senior year of college
- Enrolled in a scientific discipline
- Can commit 8-20 hours per week at the CTTC
- Be in good academic standing and approval from their academic advisor
- Science-based Graduate Students:
- Scientific background or enrolled in any scientific discipline
- Can commit to 6-8 hours a week at CTTC
- For Ph.D.
- has completed coursework necessary for the degree
- Has passed applicable qualifying exams for Ph.D. candidacy
- Permission of research advisor
- Law and Business Graduate Students:
- Scientific background (B.S./M.S./Ph.D.) preferred
- Can commit 20-30 hours per week at CTTC, with a maximum of 30 hours/week
- Be in good academic standing and approval from academic advisor
How to apply:
Submit the following information via email to cttc.internship@vanderbilt.edu.
- Cover letter
- Resume
- Written permission from research advisor or faculty advisor
This internship program is highly competitive and no one is guaranteed admittance. Nor is there any implied or guaranteed offer of employment upon completion of the internship. The term of the internship may be renewed on a semester-by-semester basis upon the discretion of the supervisor.
Instruction phase topics:
- Intellectual property protection: patents, copyrights, trade secrets
- Patent prosecution and timeline
- The history of technology transfer and the Bayh-Dole act
- Invention disclosure form
- Vanderbilt CTTC commercialization process
- Invention disclosure assessment
- Intellectual property protection
- Market potential
- Development status
- Effective prior act searching
- Conducting market analysis
- Marketing: drafting confidential/non-confidential executive summaries
- Term sheets and negotiations
Assignment phase:
- You will be paired with one or more licensing officers who will assign you to specific technologies.
- Tasks for these technologies will be based off intern’s background and what topics within the instructional phase taught.
- Additional special projects will be assigned