W.E. Cornell is dedicated to assisting STEM PhDs and postdocs in commercializing their innovations by providing the opportunity for positive collaboration and guidance.
In past years, the W.E. program schedule included weekly meetings over two semesters. For the 2025 cohort, the program format will have a slightly different look.
The seventh W.E. cohort will be the first to complete the program under the new structure, which includes two full-day workshops. Workshop 1 took place this month, focusing on entrepreneurial skills and community building within the cohort.
“I am eager to connect with individuals in STEM who are breaking barriers and leading technology-based businesses,” said Emna Sadkaoui, an Applied Economics / Management student at Cornell.
Workshop 2 will take place in February, with a focus on fundraising, operations, next steps, and a pitch session featuring W.E. Cornell advisory board members. Participants will be encouraged to take their ideas to the next level with confidence, sharing their ideas in a professional setting.
“W.E. Cornell’s focus on empowering women entrepreneurs in deep tech and providing a comprehensive curriculum on business growth and fundraising is exactly what I need to scale my ideas,” said Emily Yllescas prior to the program start. Yllescas is an undergraduate computer science student developing a software to lighten the load of an overwhelming amount of tech use.
Participants will also have the opportunity to pitch their ideas virtually to the W.E. Cornell advisory board members.
Meet the 2025 Cornell W.E. cohort!
- Crane, Juliet – Mathematics and Computer Science ’28
- Jain, Prarabdh – Ph.D., Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering ’26
- Liu, Na – Ph.D., Economics ’27
- Lynch, Sarah – M.S., Business Analytics ’25
- Oloyede, Ayomide – Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering ’26
- Punia, Rajat – Postdoctoral Associate, Flyak Lab
- Sadkaoui, Emna – Applied Economics and Management ’25
- Schulte, Zoe – MBA ’26
- Szlek, Dorota – Ph.D., Fiber Science ’26
- Verwey, Oclaya – College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
- Xie, Danqing – Ph.D., Human Behavior and Design ’27
- Yllescas, Emily – Computer Science ’27
- Zhao, Alice – Ph.D., Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering ’29
Stay up to date with W.E. Cornell’s current cohort by following the W.E. Cornell news feed.