Turner School of Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Turner School of Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Name	Turner School of Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Established	2008
Type	Private research school
Parent	Midlands University
City	Ashford
Country	United Kingdom

Turner School of Entrepreneurship and Innovation is a graduate and professional school focused on applied enterprise, venture creation, and innovation management. Founded to bridge technology transfer, startup formation, and regional development, the school integrates interdisciplinary instruction, practice-based incubation, and industry partnerships. It maintains strategic alliances with multinational corporations, public agencies, and philanthropic foundations to accelerate commercialization and social ventures.

History

The school was established in 2008 during a period of institutional expansion at Midlands University and draws lineage from earlier programs at Stanford University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, London Business School, INSEAD, and Babson College. Early funding came from a consortium including the Turner Foundation, the Wellcome Trust, the European Investment Bank, and local enterprise agencies modeled on initiatives at Techstars, Y Combinator, and Seedcamp. Founders and advisory board members included alumni and executives from Google, Microsoft, Goldman Sachs, Barclays, and the National Grid who sought to create a hub analogous to Silicon Valley, Cambridge (UK), and Shenzhen. The school expanded its facilities with capital campaigns supported by gifts from the Rockefeller Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and corporate partners such as Amazon and Siemens.

Academic programs

Turner offers a portfolio of degree and certificate programs including a Master of Science in Venture Creation, an MBA concentration in Innovation, executive education, and doctoral supervision linked to Midlands University's departments like Department of Engineering, School of Computer Science, and School of Economics. Core curricula are inspired by methods practiced at Harvard Business School, Kellogg School of Management, Wharton School, and Said Business School, emphasizing case studies, lean startup methodology from Eric Ries, design thinking popularized by IDEO, and technology commercialization approaches used at MIT Media Lab. Joint degrees and electives are offered in partnership with Royal College of Art, Imperial College London, University of Oxford, and the European School of Management. Short courses draw visiting professors and practitioners from Harvard University, Columbia Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business, and executives from Facebook, Apple Inc., Tesla, Inc., and BP.

Research and centers

The school hosts research centers modeled on institutes such as the Kauffman Foundation's research arm and the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance, including the Center for Social Innovation, the Center for Technology Transfer, and the Urban Entrepreneurship Lab. Faculty publish in journals like Journal of Business Venturing, Strategic Management Journal, and Research Policy, collaborating with scholars from London School of Economics, University of California, Berkeley, Columbia University, and National University of Singapore. Projects include impact evaluations funded by the European Commission, comparative studies with partners such as OECD and World Bank, and translational research supporting patenting with offices modeled on the United States Patent and Trademark Office and European Patent Office.

Entrepreneurship initiatives and incubators

Turner operates multiple accelerators and incubators inspired by Startupbootcamp, Y Combinator, and MassChallenge. Its flagship accelerator runs cohorts with mentorship from alumni who previously worked at Deloitte, McKinsey & Company, Accenture, and venture partners from Sequoia Capital, Index Ventures, and Accel Partners. The school manages a seed fund, corporate venture projects with BT Group and Unilever, and a social venture stream linked to Ashoka and Skoll Foundation models. Regional economic development collaborations echo programs run by Innovate UK, European Regional Development Fund, and municipal offices in London, Manchester, and Bristol.

Faculty and leadership

Leadership includes an executive dean drawn from senior roles at institutions like Imperial College Business School and Judge Business School, supported by faculty recruited from Harvard Business School, INSEAD, MIT, University of California, Berkeley, and industry fellows from Intel Corporation, Siemens, Philips, and Roche. Visiting scholars have included authors and practitioners such as Clayton Christensen, Peter Drucker (posthumous legacy fellows), Nassim Nicholas Taleb, and entrepreneurs from Twitter, Slack Technologies, and Spotify. Governance involves a board with representatives from European Investment Bank, UK Research and Innovation, and multinational corporate partners.

Student life and organizations

Student societies mirror those at leading institutions and include a Entrepreneurship Society, Women in Venture, Deep Tech Club, and a Social Impact Forum, collaborating with external groups such as Founders Forum, Nesta, and Startup Grind. Annual events feature pitch competitions judged by investors from Index Ventures, Balderton Capital, and Atomico and speaker series hosting founders from Dropbox, Airbnb, Stripe, and Revolut. Career services maintain placement pipelines into startups, scaleups, and firms like PwC, EY, KPMG, and Bain & Company.

Notable alumni and impact

Alumni have founded startups that reached Series A and later funding rounds with investors like Sequoia Capital, Benchmark, and Andreessen Horowitz; notable ventures include healthtech, cleantech, fintech, and AI companies collaborating with NHS England, Siemens Healthineers, BP Ventures, and DeepMind. Graduates have held leadership roles at Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple Inc., Uber, and in public innovation units modeled after Singapore's Government Technology Agency and Estonia's e-Residency program. Regional impact analyses cite job creation and patent outputs comparable to innovation hubs linked to Cambridge (Massachusetts), Oxford Science Park, and Silicon Roundabout.

Category:Business schools in the United Kingdom Category:Entrepreneurship schools