Stanford Technology Ventures Program : Courses

Providing Stanford students with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to bring bold ideas to life.

In collaboration with the Department of Management Science & Engineering, STVP delivers a large collection of introductory and advanced entrepreneurship and innovation affiliated-courses for both undergraduate and graduate Stanford students.

From large lectures to focused cohort experiences, STVP affiliated-courses dive deep into the areas of principled decision-making, responsible innovation, strategy, organizational behavior, creativity, finance, law, venture formation, and much more. As the entrepreneurial leadership center in Stanford’s School of Engineering, STVP believes these affiliated-courses build on a student’s technical education to support them in solving the challenges of the 21^st century and in creating maximum value for our world. See a listing of other entrepreneurship courses available across Stanford on the Graduate School of Business website.

Course Videos

Learn more about ENGR 140A

Learn more about ENGR 145

Learn more about MS&E 178

Learn more about MS&E 180

Learn more about ENGR 245

Learn more about MS&E 271

Learn more about MS&E 273

Learn more about MS&E 297

Learn more about MS&E 472

Courses

Offered: Autumn Winter Spring Summer

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Course Title

Instructor(s)

Units

Qtr Offered

Undergraduate Courses

Courses may be open to matriculated students of all levels. Contact instructor for approval.
MS&E 73SI

Chuck Eesley

Instructor(s): Chuck Eesley

1

Autumn

Units: 1

Quarter Offered: Autumn

Practicum designed to introduce freshmen and sophomores to design thinking and entrepreneurship. Students learn how to conduct user interviews, identifynmarket opportunities, find product-market fit, and develop pitch decks. Concludes with a fast-paced problem-solving session and a 'demo day'-style pitch event, in which students pitch their projects to Silicon Valley venture capitalists (VCs), entrepreneurs, and investors. Students interact with highly experienced speakers, gain mentorship from upperclassmen and VCs, and develop a worldwide entrepreneurship network, both in and out of Silicon Valley. No background knowledge or experience is necessary, only willingness to work hard, get your hands dirty, and learn. Limited enrollment. Application required: https://tinyurl.com/bootcamp2021.

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MS&E 79SI

Tom Byers

Instructor(s): Tom Byers

1

Autumn

Units: 1

Quarter Offered: Autumn

Extension of the PEAK Fellows program. Serves as an opportunity for students to explore what it means to create and work for principled, entrepreneurial businesses. Through readings and peer-led discussions, students will definentheir personal set of values and principles to serve as a guide in shaping future teams and workplaces. Prerequisite: admission to PEAK Fellows Program. See https://stvp.stanford.edu/peak-fellows.

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Stanford-In-Florence 84

Tom Byers

Instructor(s): Tom Byers

4

Spring

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Spring

This course is intended for sophomores, juniors, and seniors of all majors. With an emphasis on the wisdom of ethical behavior, it is a rigorous introduction to both the entrepreneurial process and the role of the individual and teams within high-growth ventures. Case studies, lectures, workshops and projects cover ventures involving science and technology, with special attention on both the historical significance of the Renaissance and today's opportunity in Italy. No prerequisites are necessary. This course is based upon Engineering 145( http://e145.stanford.edu), which was first offered in 1999 and now given multiple times each year at Stanford.

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ENGR 140B

Tom Byers, Ann Miura-Ko

Instructor(s): Tom Byers, Ann Miura-Ko

1-2

Autumn

Units: 1-2

Quarter Offered: Autumn

Open to Mayfield Fellows only; taken during the summer internship at a technology startup. Students exchange experiences and continue the formal learning process. Activities journal. Credit given following quarter.

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ENGR 140A

Tom Byers, Ann Miura-Ko

Instructor(s): Tom Byers, Ann Miura-Ko

3-4

Spring

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Spring

First of three-part sequence for students selected to the Mayfield Fellows Program. Focuses on management and leadership of purposeful technology-intensive startups. Learning outcomes include entrepreneurial leadership skills related to product and market strategy, venture financing, team recruiting and culture, and the challenges of managing growth and ethical decision-making. Other engineering faculty, founders, and venture capitalists participate as appropriate. Visit http://mfp.stanford.edu for more about this work/study program.

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ENGR 140C

Tom Byers, Ann Miura-Ko

Instructor(s): Tom Byers, Ann Miura-Ko

2-3

Autumn

Units: 2-3

Quarter Offered: Autumn

Open to Mayfield Fellows only. Capstone to the 140 sequence. Students, faculty, employers, and venture capitalists share recent internship experiences and analytical frameworks. Students develop living case studies and integrative project reports.

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MS&E 140

John Lord

Instructor(s): John Lord

3-4

Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer

Non-majors and minors who have taken or are taking elementary accounting should not enroll. Introduction to accounting concepts and the operating characteristics of accounting systems. The principles of financial and cost accounting, design of accounting systems, techniques of analysis, and cost control. Interpretation and use of accounting information for decision making. Designed for the user of accounting information and not as an introduction to a professional accounting career. Enrollment limited. Admission by order of enrollment.

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ENGR 145

Chuck Eesley, Rebeca Hwang, Pedram Mokrian

Instructor(s): Chuck Eesley, Rebeca Hwang, Pedram Mokrian

4

Autumn, Summer

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Autumn, Summer

How does the entrepreneurship process enable the creation and growth of high-impact enterprises? Why does entrepreneurial leadership matter even in a large organization or a non-profit venture? What are the differences between just an idea and true opportunity? How do entrepreneurs form teams and gather the resources necessary to create a successful startup? Mentor-guided projects focus on analyzing students' ideas, case studies allow for examining the nuances of innovation, research examines the entrepreneurial process, and expert guests allow for networking with Silicon Valley's world-class entrepreneurs and venture capitalists. For undergraduates of all majors with interest in startups the leverage breakthrough information, energy, medical and consumer technologies. No prerequisites. Limited enrollment.

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ENGR 148

Jack Fuchs

Instructor(s): Jack Fuchs

3

Winter

Units: 3

Quarter Offered: Winter

Examines how leaders tackle significant events that occur in high-growth entrepreneurial companies. Students prepare their minds for the difficult entrepreneurial situations that they will encounter in their lives in whatever their chosen career. Cases and guest speakers discuss not only the business rationale for the decisions taken but also how their principles affected those decisions. The teaching team brings its wealth of experience in both entrepreneurship and VC investing to the class. Previous entrepreneurship coursework or experience preferred. Limited enrollment. Admission by application: http://web.stanford.edu/class/engr248/apply.

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CSRE 161P

Valerie Red-Horse Mohl

Instructor(s): Valerie Red-Horse Mohl

3

Spring

Units: 3

Quarter Offered: Spring

This course is designed for students of all backgrounds and provides an introduction to business ownership and an entrepreneurial mindset with a focus on operating businesses with racial equity as a core principle and/or within diverse communities with an aim to create social impact for future generations as well as profitability and sustainability models. The course will introduce the beginning elements of creating a business concept (formation, product, business strategy) as well as the additional overlay of social impact and cultural considerations. Types of financing as well as effective pitching will also be covered. Course materials will include instructor presentations, case studies, homework assignments, creation of students¿ own business concept plan and guest interviews with successful professionals working within social impact and diverse communities. Post COVID business considerations related to finance, policy and advocacy will also be covered.

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MS&E 175

Riitta Katila

Instructor(s): Riitta Katila

3-4

Winter
BIOE 177

Tina Seelig

Instructor(s): Tina Seelig

4

Winter

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Winter

The famous computer scientist, Alan Kay, once said, "The best way to predict the future is to invent it." As such, we are all responsible for inventing the future we hope we and our descendants will experience. In this highly interactive course, we will be exploring how to predict and invent the future and why this is important by focusing on a wide range of frontier technologies, such as robotics, AI, genomics, autonomous vehicles, blockchain, 3D Printing, VR/AR, synthetic meat, etc. The class will feature debates in which students present utopian and dystopian scenarios, and determine what has to be done to inoculate ourselves against the negative consequences. Limited enrollment. Admission by application: dschool.stanford.edu/classes.

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MS&E 178

Ravi Belani, Toby Corey, Emily Ma

Instructor(s): Ravi Belani, Toby Corey, Emily Ma

2

Autumn, Winter, Spring

Units: 2

Quarter Offered: Autumn, Winter, Spring

Is there more to entrepreneurship than inventing the better mouse trap? This course uses the speakers from the Entrepreneurial Thought Leader seminar (MS&E472) to drive research and discussion about what makes an entrepreneur successful. Topics include venture financing, business models, and interpersonal dynamics in the startup environment. Students meet before and after MS&E 472 to prepare for and debrief after the sessions. Enrollment limited to 60 students. Application available at first class session.

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MS&E 180

Kathleen Eisenhardt, Rosanne Siino

Instructor(s): Kathleen Eisenhardt, Rosanne Siino

4

Autumn, Winter

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Autumn, Winter

For undergraduates only; preference to MS&E majors. Classical and contemporary organization theory; the behavior of individuals, groups, and organizations. Limited enrollment. Students must attend and complete an application at the first class session.

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MS&E 182B

Robert Sutton

Instructor(s): Robert Sutton

4

Not Offered in AY 2021-2022

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Not Offered in AY 2021-2022

Project-based course for students who wish to explore focused intellectual topics or applied questions pertinent to leading organizational change. Work is done in groups of three to five students that are formed prior to the start of class. Prerequisite: 182A or permission of instructor.

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MS&E 182A

Robert Sutton

Instructor(s): Robert Sutton

4

Spring

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Spring

This course blends lecture, case discussions, readings about pertinent research, and hands-on projects to learn about what leaders and senior teams can do to bring about broad-based change in complex organizations. Topics include the role of the CEO and the senior team, organizational growth and scaling, organizational culture, organizational design, and innovation. The course focuses in particular on the causes and cures for dysfunctional organizational friction, and the related question what organizations ought to make difficult or impossible to do. Limited enrollment. For juniors and seniors, with preference given to students who have taken MS&E 180.

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MS&E 188

Pamela Hinds

Instructor(s): Pamela Hinds

4

Winter

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Winter

Grand challenges of our time will demand entirely new ways of thinking about when, how, and under what conditions organizations are "doing good" and what effects that has. Focus is on the role of organizations in society, the ways that organizations can "do good," the challenges organizations face in attempting to "do good", limitations to current ways of organizing, alternative ways to organize and lead organizations that are "good," and the role and responsibilities of individuals in organizations. Students will reflect on and refine their own values and purpose to identify ways in which they can "do good." This course has been designated as a Cardinal Course by the Haas Center for Public Service.

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CHEMENG 189

Joseph DeSimone, Crista Leigh Farrell, Prima Dewi Sinawang

Instructor(s): Joseph DeSimone, Crista Leigh Farrell, Prima Dewi Sinawang

3

Autumn

Units: 3

Quarter Offered: Autumn

This course is designed to enable graduate students and advanced undergraduate students in science and engineering to hone strategies for career success. Drawing strongly on entrepreneurial principles and lessons from industry, the course complements the traditional curriculum by focusing on career-building tools that students need to improve their professional prospects and achieve their goals. Relevant for those who plan to pursue careers in academia and industry alike, a central focus will be on managing one's career as if it were a start-up, emphasizing principles that empower individuals to take more control of their futures: investing in yourself, building professional networks, taking intelligent risks, and making uncertainty and volatility work to one's advantage. Through a series of in-classroom presentations and interviews - with professors, entrepreneurs, executives, athletes, investors, and thought leaders from diverse fields and sectors - students will gain important knowledge and practical strategies, with course modules on topics such as ideation and innovation, the skill of self-advocacy, the fundamentals of negotiation, building and managing teams, and effective communication and storytelling. Additional modules will focus on biotechnology and deep tech start-up companies, as well as strategies for cultivating a successful academic career. The idea for this course emerged from the instructor's reflections on 30 years of research, teaching, mentorship, and deep entrepreneurial experiences spanning the gamut of approaches to translational science - academic discovery, invention, conceiving of and leading multi-institutional research centers, building research and business teams, launching and financing start-ups, building business models to advance real-world applications of cutting-edge science, and seeing through research-based companies to success (including growing an idea into a multi-billion dollar company). For this course, students will be expected to complete relevant reading assignments, participate actively in class dialogue, and complete regular writing assignments focused on course topics as they relate to one's own career-building needs and professional aspirations. Students may also have opportunities to lead class discussions on topics of interest.

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MS&E 193

Herb Lin

Instructor(s): Herb Lin

3-4

Autumn

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Autumn

Explores the relation between technology, war, and national security policy from early history to modern day, focusing on current U.S. national security challenges and the role that technology plays in shaping our understanding and response to these challenges. Topics include the interplay between technology and modes of warfare; dominant and emerging technologies such as nuclear weapons, cyber, sensors, stealth, and biological; security challenges to the U.S.; and the U.S. response and adaptation to new technologies of military significance.

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EARTHSYS 213

Chris Field, Brian Sharbono, Steve Weinstein

Instructor(s): Chris Field, Brian Sharbono, Steve Weinstein

3

Winter

Units: 3

Quarter Offered: Winter

The challenges of addressing climate change and sustainability require urgency as well as innovative solutions. Startups operate with speed and urgency, 24/7. In recent years they have learned not only how to effectively innovate but also how to be extremely efficient with resources and time, using lean startup methods. Participants in this class develop the skills required of a mission driven entrepreneur by tackling a critical problem in climate and sustainability as part of a team of engineers, scientists, social scientists, MBAs, and law and policy experts. Teams will engage pressing climate and sustainability problems and learn how to apply lean startup principles ("business model canvas," "customer development," and "agile engineering") in developing solutions. nnStudents will take a hands-on, experiential approach to explore options for solutions and needs for stakeholders. The process of exploring options will require participants to engage deeply and to learn how to work closely with policy makers, technologists, government officials, NGOs, foundations, companies, and others interested in solving these problems, while demanding that teams continually build iterative prototypes to test their understanding of the problem and solution hypotheses.nnFor more information on problems and sponsors as they are added and to apply for the course, see https://h4cs.stanford.edu/. Applications required in November. Limited enrollment.

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Graduate Courses

Courses may be open to matriculated students of all levels. Contact instructor for approval.
ME 208

Jeffrey Schox, Diana Lin

Instructor(s): Jeffrey Schox, Diana Lin

2-3

Autumn

Units: 2-3

Quarter Offered: Autumn

This course teaches the essentials for a startup to build a valuable patent portfolio and avoid a patent infringement lawsuit. Jeffrey Schox, who is the top recommended patent attorney for Y Combinator, built the patent portfolio for Twilio (IPO), Cruise ($1B acquisition), and 300 startups that have collectively raised over $3B in venture capital. This course is equally applicable to EE, CS, and Bioengineering students. For those students who are interested in a career in Patent Law, please note that this course is a prerequisite for ME238 Patent Prosecution.

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MS&E 240

John Lord

Instructor(s): John Lord

3-4

Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer

Non-majors and minors who have taken or are taking elementary accounting should not enroll. Introduction to accounting concepts and the operating characteristics of accounting systems. The principles of financial and cost accounting, design of accounting systems, techniques of analysis, and cost control. Interpretation and use of accounting information for decision making. Designed for the user of accounting information and not as an introduction to a professional accounting career. Enrollment limited. Admission by order of enrollment.

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ENGR 245

Steve Blank, Jeff Epstein, Steve Weinstein, Mar Hershenson, Heidi Roizen, Tom Bedecarré

Instructor(s): Steve Blank, Jeff Epstein, Steve Weinstein, Mar Hershenson, Heidi Roizen, Tom Bedecarré

3-4

Winter, Spring

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Winter, Spring

Learn how to turn a technical idea from a lab, research, or vision into a successful business using the Lean Launchpad process (business model canvas, customer development, running experiments, and agile engineering.) Hands-on experiential class. 15+ hours per week talking to customers, regulators and partners outside the classroom, plus time building minimal viable products. This class is the basis of the National Science Foundation I-Corps ¿ with a focus on understanding all the components to build for deep technology and life science applications. Team applications required in March. Proposals may be software, hardware, or service of any kind. See course website http://leanlaunchpad.stanford.edu/. Prerequisite: interest in and passion for exploring whether your technology idea can become a real company. Limited enrollment.

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CEE 246

Raymond Levitt, Michael Lyons, Pedram Mokrian

Instructor(s): Raymond Levitt, Michael Lyons, Pedram Mokrian

3-4

Winter, Spring

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Winter, Spring

A project-based course where teams of 4 prepare their entrepreneurial venture for fundraising and launch. Students acquire the experience of an early-stage entrepreneur as they progress through stages of team building, opportunity assessment, product-market fit analysis, business model architecture, go-to market strategy, product planning, financial modelling, and fundraising planning. The course structure includes weekly workshops, guest presentations from seasoned entrepreneurs, weekly meetings with the teaching team, and one-on-one support from a dedicated industry mentor. The experience culminates in three pitches to panels of VCs and other industry experts. By the end of the class, successful students will be equipped with the knowledge and network to create impactful business ideas, many of which have been launched from this class. Open to all Stanford students. No prerequisites. For more information, visit the course website: https://web.stanford.edu/class/msande273. Enrolment by application: https://web.stanford.edu/class/msande273/apply.

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ENGR 248

Jack Fuchs

Instructor(s): Jack Fuchs

3

Winter

Units: 3

Quarter Offered: Winter

Examines how leaders tackle significant events that occur in high-growth entrepreneurial companies. Students prepare their minds for the difficult entrepreneurial situations that they will encounter in their lives in whatever their chosen career. Cases and guest speakers discuss not only the business rationale for the decisions taken but also how their principles affected those decisions. The teaching team brings its wealth of experience in both entrepreneurship and VC investing to the class. Previous entrepreneurship coursework or experience preferred. Limited enrollment. Admission by application: http://web.stanford.edu/class/engr248/apply

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MS&E 270

Kathleen Eisenhardt

Instructor(s): Kathleen Eisenhardt

3-4

Winter

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Winter

For graduate students only. Introduction to the basic concepts of strategy, with emphasis on high technology firms. Topics: competitive positioning, resource-based perspectives, co-opetition and standards setting, and complexity/evolutionary perspectives. Limited enrollment. Students must attend and complete an application at the first class session.

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MS&E 271

Lynda Kate Smith, Victoria Woo

Instructor(s): Lynda Kate Smith, Victoria Woo

3-4

Not offered in AY 2021-2022

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Not offered in AY 2021-2022

Introduces core marketing concepts to bring a new product or service to market and build for its success. Geared to both entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs alike who have a passion for innovation. Course themes include: Identifying markets and opportunities, defining the offering and customer experience, creating demand, generating revenue, and measuring success. The team-based final focuses on developing a go-to-market strategy based on concepts from the course. Learn about managing self, building culture and teams, strategically think about your contribution as entrepreneur or intrapreuneur to an organization, community or society at large. Highly experiential and project based. Limited enrollment.

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MS&E 272

Chuck Eesley

Instructor(s): Chuck Eesley

3-4

Spring

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Spring

How and why does access to entrepreneurial opportunities vary by geographic borders, racial/gender borders, or other barriers created by where or who you are? What kinds of inequalities are created by limited access to capital or education and what role does entrepreneurship play in upward mobility in societies globally? What are the unique issues involved in creating a successful startup in Europe, Latin America, Africa, China or India? What is entrepreneurial leadership in a venture that spans country borders? Is Silicon Valley-style entrepreneurship possible in other places? How does an entrepreneur act differently when creating a company in a less-developed institutional environment? Learn through forming teams, a mentor-guided startup project focused on developing students' startups in international markets, case studies, research on the unequal access to wealth creation and innovation via entrepreneurship, while also networking with top entrepreneurs and venture capitalists who work across borders.

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MS&E 273

Raymond Levitt, Michael Lyons, Pedram Mokrian

Instructor(s): Raymond Levitt, Michael Lyons, Pedram Mokrian

3-4

Spring

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Spring

A project-based course where teams of 4 prepare their entrepreneurial venture for fundraising and launch. Students acquire the experience of an early-stage entrepreneur as they progress through stages of team building, opportunity assessment, product-market fit analysis, business model architecture, go-to market strategy, product planning, financial modelling, and fundraising planning. The course structure includes weekly workshops, guest presentations from seasoned entrepreneurs, weekly meetings with the teaching team, and one-on-one support from a dedicated industry mentor. The experience culminates in three pitches to panels of VCs and other industry experts. By the end of the class, successful students will be equipped with the knowledge and network to create impactful business ideas, many of which have been launched from this class. Open to all Stanford students. No prerequisites. For more information, visit the course website: https://web.stanford.edu/class/msande273. Enrolment by application: https://web.stanford.edu/class/msande273/apply.

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MS&E 275

Ann Miura-Ko

Instructor(s): Ann Miura-Ko

3

Winter

Units: 3

Quarter Offered: Winter

Explore the foundational and strategic elements needed for startups to be designed for "venture scale" at inception. Themes include controversial and disruptive insights, competitive analysis, network effects, organizational design, and capital deployment. Case studies, expert guests, and experiential learning projects will be used. Primarily for graduate students. Limited enrollment. Admission by application. Recommended: basic accounting.

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MS&E 276

Tom Byers, Trevor Loy

Instructor(s): Tom Byers, Trevor Loy

3

Autumn

Units: 3

Quarter Offered: Autumn

For graduate students only, with a preference for engineering and science majors. Emphasis on managing high-growth, early-stage enterprises, especially those with innovation-based products and services. Students work in teams to develop skills and approaches necessary to becoming effective entrepreneurial leaders and managers. Topics include assessing risk, understanding business models, analyzing key operational metrics, modeling cash flow and capital requirements, evaluating sources of financing, structuring and negotiating investments, managing organizational culture and incentives, managing the interplay between ownership and growth, and handling adversity and failure. Limited enrollment. Admission by application. Prerequisite: basic accounting.

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MS&E 277A

Tina Seelig

Instructor(s): Tina Seelig

3

Winter

Units: 3

Quarter Offered: Winter

This course sequence is part of the Accel Leadership Program which accepts 24 technically-minded students from across Stanford. The program focuses on how to lead entrepreneurial ventures, with a focus on startup strategy, organizational structure, securing resources, operating models, and how to build an effective team. There will be skill-building workshops as well as living case studies with startup founders. Each student will be on a team that will tackle a real world business problem for a high growth venture and present their findings to the class. The selection process will run during Fall quarter 2020, and applications will be available at https://stvp.stanford.edu/students

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MS&E 277B

Tina Seelig

Instructor(s): Tina Seelig

3

Spring

Units: 3

Quarter Offered: Spring

This course sequence is part of the Accel Leadership Program which accepts 24 technically-minded students from across Stanford. The program focuses on how to lead entrepreneurial ventures, with a focus on startup strategy, organizational structure, securing resources, operating models, and how to build an effective team. There will be skill-building workshops as well as living case studies with startup founders. Each student will be on a team that will tackle a real world business problem for a high growth venture and present their findings to the class. The selection process will run during Fall quarter 2020, and applications will be available at https://stvp.stanford.edu/students

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MS&E 278

Jeffrey Schox, Diana Lin

Instructor(s): Jeffrey Schox, Diana Lin

2-3

Autumn

Units: 2-3

Quarter Offered: Autumn

This course teaches the essentials for a startup to build a valuable patent portfolio and avoid a patent infringement lawsuit. Jeffrey Schox, who is the top recommended patent attorney for Y Combinator, built the patent portfolio for Twilio (IPO), Cruise ($1B acquisition), and 300 startups that have collectively raised over $3B in venture capital. This course is equally applicable to EE, CS, and Bioengineering students. For those students who are interested in a career in Patent Law, please note that this course is a prerequisite for ME238 Patent Prosecution.

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MS&E 280

Robert Sutton, Rosanne Siino

Instructor(s): Robert Sutton, Rosanne Siino

3-4

Winter, Spring

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Winter, Spring

Organization theory; concepts and functions of management; behavior of the individual, work group, and organization. Emphasis is on cases and related discussion. Enrollment limited. Spring Quarter section is restricted to HCP and NDO students.

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CHEMENG 289

Joseph DeSimone, Crista Leigh Farrell, Prima Dewi Sinawang

Instructor(s): Joseph DeSimone, Crista Leigh Farrell, Prima Dewi Sinawang

3

Autumn

Units: 3

Quarter Offered: Autumn

This course is designed to enable graduate students and advanced undergraduate students in science and engineering to hone strategies for career success. Drawing strongly on entrepreneurial principles and lessons from industry, the course complements the traditional curriculum by focusing on career-building tools that students need to improve their professional prospects and achieve their goals. Relevant for those who plan to pursue careers in academia and industry alike, a central focus will be on managing one's career as if it were a start-up, emphasizing principles that empower individuals to take more control of their futures: investing in yourself, building professional networks, taking intelligent risks, and making uncertainty and volatility work to one's advantage. Through a series of in-classroom presentations and interviews - with professors, entrepreneurs, executives, athletes, investors, and thought leaders from diverse fields and sectors - students will gain important knowledge and practical strategies, with course modules on topics such as ideation and innovation, the skill of self-advocacy, the fundamentals of negotiation, building and managing teams, and effective communication and storytelling. Additional modules will focus on biotechnology and deep tech start-up companies, as well as strategies for cultivating a successful academic career. The idea for this course emerged from the instructor's reflections on 30 years of research, teaching, mentorship, and deep entrepreneurial experiences spanning the gamut of approaches to translational science - academic discovery, invention, conceiving of and leading multi-institutional research centers, building research and business teams, launching and financing start-ups, building business models to advance real-world applications of cutting-edge science, and seeing through research-based companies to success (including growing an idea into a multi-billion dollar company). For this course, students will be expected to complete relevant reading assignments, participate actively in class dialogue, and complete regular writing assignments focused on course topics as they relate to one's own career-building needs and professional aspirations. Students may also have opportunities to lead class discussions on topics of interest.

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MS&E 293

Herb Lin

Instructor(s): Herb Lin

3-4

Autumn

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Autumn

Explores the relation between technology, war, and national security policy from early history to modern day, focusing on current U.S. national security challenges and the role that technology plays in shaping our understanding and response to these challenges. Topics include the interplay between technology and modes of warfare; dominant and emerging technologies such as nuclear weapons, cyber, sensors, stealth, and biological; security challenges to the U.S.; and the U.S. response and adaptation to new technologies of military significance.

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MS&E 297

Steve Blank, Joe Felter, Steve Weinstein, Tom Bedecarré

Instructor(s): Steve Blank, Joe Felter, Steve Weinstein, Tom Bedecarré

3-4

Spring

Units: 3-4

Quarter Offered: Spring

In a crisis, national security initiatives move at the speed of a startup yet in peacetime they default to decades-long acquisition and procurement cycles. Startups operate with continual speed and urgency 24/7. Over the last few years they've learned how to be not only fast, but extremely efficient with resources and time using lean startup methodologies. In this class student teams will take actual national security problems and learn how to apply lean startup principles, ("business model canvas," "customer development," and "agile engineering) to discover and validate customer needs and to continually build iterative prototypes to test whether they understood the problem and solution. Teams take a hands-on approach requiring close engagement with actual military, Department of Defense and other government agency end-users. Team applications required in February, see h4d.stanford.edu. Limited enrollment.

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ME 301

Perry Klebahn, Jeremy Utley

Instructor(s): Perry Klebahn, Jeremy Utley

4

Spring

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Spring

This is an intense course in product design and development offered to graduate students only (no exceptions). In just ten weeks, we will apply principles of design thinking to the real-life challenge of imagining, prototyping, testing and iterating, building, pricing, marketing, distributing and selling your product or service. You will work hard on both sides of your brain. You will experience the joy of success and the (passing) pain of failure along the way. This course is an excellent chance to practice design thinking in a demanding, fast-paced, results-oriented group with support from faculty and industry leaders. This course may change your life. We will treat each team and idea as a real start-up, so the work will be intense. If you do not have a passionate and overwhelming urge to start a business or launch a product or service, this class will not be a fit. Refer to this website for up-to-date class and office hours information: https://www.launchpad.stanford.edu/

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ME 368

Perry Klebahn, Kathryn Segovia, Jeremy Utley

Instructor(s): Perry Klebahn, Kathryn Segovia, Jeremy Utley

4

Not offered in AY 2021-2022

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Not offered in AY 2021-2022

d.Leadership is a course that teaches the coaching and leadership skills needed to drive good design process in groups. d.leaders will work on real projects driving design projects within organizations and gain real world skills as they experiment with their leadership style. Take this course if you are inspired by past design classes and want skills to lead design projects beyond Stanford. Preference given to students who have taken other Design Group or d.school classes. Admission by application.

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BIOE 376

Stefanos Zenios

Instructor(s): Stefanos Zenios

4

Autumn

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Autumn

A hands-on, project-based course, in which teams identify and work with users, domain experts, and industry participants to identify an unmet customer need, design new products or services that meet that need, and develop business models to support the creation and launch of startup products or services. This course integrates methods from human-centered design, lean startup, and business model planning. Each team will conceive, design, build, and field-test critical aspects of both the product or service and the business model.

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BIOE 377

Stefanos Zenios

Instructor(s): Stefanos Zenios

4

Winter

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Winter

STRAMGT 356/ BIOE 376 teams that concluded at the end of fall quarter that their preliminary product or service and business model suggest a path to viability, may continue with STRAMGT 366/ BIOE 377 in winter quarter. Teams develop more elaborate versions of their product/service and business model, perform a series of experiments to test key hypotheses about their product and business model, and prepare and present an investor pitch for a seed round of financing to a panel of seasoned investors and entrepreneurs.

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MS&E 489

Perry Klebahn, Kathryn Segovia, Jeremy Utley

Instructor(s): Perry Klebahn, Kathryn Segovia, Jeremy Utley

4

Not offered in AY 2021-2022

Units: 4

Quarter Offered: Not offered in AY 2021-2022

d.Leadership is a course that teaches the coaching and leadership skills needed to drive good design process in groups. d.leaders will work on real projects driving design projects within organizations and gain real world skills as they experiment with their leadership style. Take this course if you are inspired by past design classes and want skills to lead design projects beyond Stanford. Preference given to students who have taken other Design Group or d.school classes. Admission by application.

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Doctoral Courses
MS&E 370

Kathleen Eisenhardt

Instructor(s): Kathleen Eisenhardt

1

Autumn, Winter, Spring

Units: 1

Quarter Offered: Autumn, Winter, Spring

This course will cover focused exploration of contemporary readings and classics as relevant in strategy, innovation and entrepreneurship such as platforms, ecosystems, institutional logics, and strategic "games" in nascent markets. The course will include both content and methods discussions, including theory-building from multiple cases. PhD students only. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.

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MS&E 371

Riitta Katila

Instructor(s): Riitta Katila

1-3

Winter

Units: 1-3

Quarter Offered: Winter

Doctoral research seminar, limited to Ph.D. students. Current research on innovation strategy. Topics: scientific discovery, innovation search, organizational learning, evolutionary approaches, and incremental and radical change. Topics change yearly. Recommended: course in statistics or research methods.

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MS&E 372

Chuck Eesley

Instructor(s): Chuck Eesley

1-3

Not offered in AY 2021-2022

Units: 1-3

Quarter Offered: Not offered in AY 2021-2022

Classic and current research on entrepreneurship. In this class, we will focus on questions of how entrepreneurship may exacerbate or alleviate inequalities in society across race/ethnicity, gender and class. How do institutional environments shape who engages in entrepreneurship and how successful they become? We will read literature from economics, sociology and strategy/management that has theoretically and empirically examined the phenomenon of entrepreneurship. Limited enrollment, restricted to PhD students. Prerequisites: SOC 363 or equivalent, and permission of instructor.

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MS&E 376

Riitta Katila

Instructor(s): Riitta Katila

1-3

Not offered in AY 2021-2022

Open to all Stanford students
BIOE 375

Narges Baniasadi, Lyn Denend

Instructor(s): Narges Baniasadi, Lyn Denend

3

Spring

Units: 3

Quarter Offered: Spring

Addressing societal health and the environmental/social/economic determinants of health is a new frontier of entrepreneurship to improve global and public health at scale. In this hybrid seminar-based and experiential course, you will learn about the scientific and economic challenges and opportunities for innovating in these areas. You will also design solutions and ventures aimed at tackling specific societal health problems. Our instructors and guest speakers are inspiring innovators and leaders in the fields of entrepreneurship and health.

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BIOE 394

Narges Baniasadi

Instructor(s): Narges Baniasadi

1

Spring

Units: 1

Quarter Offered: Spring

Addressing climate change and environmental/social determinants of health are the next frontiers of innovation and entrepreneurship. In this seminar you will learn about scientific and economic challenges and opportunities in innovating in these areas. Speakers are inspiring entrepreneurs and leaders who are addressing planet and global health challenges through their work. The instructor, Dr. Narges Baniasadi, is a successful serial entrepreneur (co-founder of Bina, acquired by Roche) who now focuses on purposeful entrepreneurship.

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MS&E 472

Ravi Belani, Tom Byers, Toby Corey, Emily Ma

Instructor(s): Ravi Belani, Tom Byers, Toby Corey, Emily Ma

1

Autumn, Winter, Spring

Units: 1

Quarter Offered: Autumn, Winter, Spring

Learn about entrepreneurship, innovation, culture, startups and strategy from a diverse lineup of accomplished leaders and entrepreneurs in venture capital, technology, education, philanthropy and more. Open to all Stanford students. Required weekly assignment. May be repeated for credit.

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See a listing of other entrepreneurship courses available across Stanford on the Graduate School of Business website.

Acknowledgements

Our sincere thanks to Fenwick & West for supporting our courses taught by adjunct faculty, in partnership with Management Science & Engineering.

Courses

Course Videos

Courses

Undergraduate Courses

Graduate Courses

Doctoral Courses

Open to all Stanford students

Acknowledgements