Pathfinders
Innovation
From Academia to the Future: Unleashing human potential to imagine and build the world to come.
Purpose
The program is designed to support researchers, PhD candidates, and post-docs in navigating complexity, by unlocking their potential beyond academia, within industry and institutions, to help them build impactful futures.
Participants
A selected group of 30 university researchers, PhD students, and doctoral candidates.
Pathfinder Innovation Bootcamp
Milan, 2-5 September 2026
The third edition will take place in person in Milan, over four days. It is designed to support researchers, PhDs, and post-docs in exploring opportunities beyond academia, with a focus on:
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Emerging technological trendsand theskills requiredin non-academic work environments,
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Personal motivations, self-reflection, and collaborative work (both individual and team-based),
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Mentoring and talkswithindustry managers, entrepreneurs, and HR professionals.
Each participant will receive personalized feedbackon their profile and an individual development planaimed at strengthening key areas for a successful transition into new professional contexts.
Integrated Activities – Pathfinder Innovation Challengers
Pathfinder Innovation Challengersis thenatural continuationof the Bootcamp for those who wish to actively pursue their professional development journey.
It is a 4-month part-time program in which participants, working in teams, tackle real-life challenges proposed by companies and institutions. These challenges may relate to existing projects or new initiatives, offering a concrete opportunity to take action, develop cross-cutting skills and collaborate with the private and public sectors on high-impact cases.