Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1. What is the Incubation Centre all about ?
Incubation centre is another name for incubation hub. It is where individuals with creative and innovative ideas are given opportunity to grow their ideas to start-up.
2. Why is it called an incubation Centre?
It is called incubation centre because it is where creative and innovative ideas are nursed and tested before deployment.
3. How many Incubation centre do you have in NOUN?
There are seven incubation centres in NOUN. They are North Centra Incubation Centre, Abuja; North East Incubation Centre I, Maiduguri; North East Incubation Centre II, Bogoro; North West Incubation Centre, Kano; South East Incubation Centre, Enugu; South South Incubation Centre, Uyo; and South West Incubation Centre, Lagos.
4. I am afraid of sharing my idea. Will incubation Centre protect my idea?
Your idea is protected. NOUN has a directorate of Linkages and Advancement who work with the Directorate for Entrepreneurship and General Studies to protect your intellectual property. You will be properly guided on how to patent your idea
5. Is it compulsory we present business plan and why should student presenting it?
Yes. This is the first step through which the university will be able to identify students with creative and innovative ideas for further guidance to start-up.
This depends on the level of your idea. If you are still at the stage of generating your idea, you do not need to come with any product. What will be required is the process. For those that have gone beyond idea generation and development, can come with the products with detailed explanation and documented process on how you arrived at the products.
The equipment at the incubation centres are for you to use to bring your ideas into reality. You are also allowed to use the equipment for production under the mentorship of your coordinators.
The centres are not involved in vocation training but the resident incubatees are allowed to organized trainings under the guidance of the coordinators
8. What if am not interested being an incubatee due to the nature of my job?
We encourage every student with creative and innovative idea to be enrolled in the incubation centre being the only avenue the university will be able to provide support and link you to available opportunities.
The university is not unaware of the peculiarity of NOUN students. In NOUN, we have both in-person and virtual incubation system. We encourage those working to register under the virtual incubation system.
It is good to grow your idea and passion while you are working. NOUN motto is work and learn. It is an opportunity for you to build your passion. There are a lot of success stories through this means.
Only those who pass through the incubation system from year 2022 that will be qualified to earn a certificate on Entrepreneurship from NOUN, which is now a requirement for those seeking grant or loan from Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
9. Why must an incubatee fill the incubatee form and what are the benefits after?
The filling of the form and your consent authenticate your enrolment into the incubation centre. This also shows the proposed period of incubation and graduation from the incubation centre. This will guide the university management on how many incubatees require start-up fund and required support that may be provided.
10. What are the aims and objectives of establishing the incubation centres?
The aim is to support indigenous creative and innovative ideas that will contribute to the development of the nation.
The objectives are to provide:
- entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurship training.
- start-up support for NOUN students and others.
- mentorship for individuals with creative and innovative ideas.
- support for commercialization of academic research.
11. Why is the writing and presentation of enterprise ideas of GST302 60% and exams 40%?
The course is a practical course, and the focus is on accessing ideas that can solve identified challenges around us. So, emphasis is on doing.
12. Shouldn’t GST302 be optional for interested students
No. Every programme of study has entrepreneurship embedded. Given opportunity to everyone to have access to entrepreneurial skills, provide a better understanding on how well you can excel in your profession.
13. Will my Centre provide resources (Computer with internet) for me to do my online presentation?
The university is working out modality to have virtual classrooms in the study centres. Once that is available, you can make presentation from your study centres. However, those that can go to the incubation centres will have free access to computer and internet to make their presentations