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Dubai, United Arab Emirates & London, UK -- ReimaginED Collective & UCL Edtech Labs
ReimaginEd Collective and UCL Edtech Labs are proud to announce the launch of the region's first edtech focused lab. This 6-week accelerator-style program, kicking off in February 2023 and co-developed by the two partners, will provide access to UCL Edtech Labs' expertise and workshops designed by world leading academics at University College London, giving participants the opportunity to develop and grow truly impactful products and ideas, and helping build contextually relevant dealflow for investing in edtech in the region.
The program will have dual content streams that are focused on idea-stage founders and those more advanced in their journey, looking to raise Series A funding. Participants will learn evidence-based methods, understand how to effectively structure and communicate their pitches, develop financial modeling strategies, apply storytelling tricks to their visions and impact goals and apply effective fund-raising tactics. In addition to training, mentoring and partner access, the program will also offer funding to the founders that show the greatest potential.
"We are incredibly excited for the launch of the region's first edtech focused lab," said Aman Merchant, Founder & General Partner at ReimaginEd Collective. "This program will provide a fantastic opportunity to develop and grow transformative solutions catered for the MENA region - and is the kick-off for a series of initiatives to follow from ReimaginEd Collective, building on its innovation award from Dubai Cares at the RewirEd Global Summit in 2021, and recognising the dire need for education transformation in a region having the world’s highest youth unemployment".
Basem Abu Dagga, Co-Founder at ReimaginEd Collective, added: "A key part of our mission at the ReimaginED Collective is to host edtech programs that collectively help improve the way people learn all over the world - and this inaugural Lab gets us off the ground.”
Houtan Froushan, Director at UCL Edtech Labs, said: "We are thrilled to be partnering with ReimaginEd Collective to launch the region's first edtech-focused program. There is huge potential in the MENA region for impact-led founders to support teaching and learning with learner-centred innovations. I see our combined expertise, in research-focused training, unrivaled expert mentorship and supportive community, as a unique and exciting prospect for the region’s exciting and growing startup space. We aim to give founders the structure they need to make a real and positive difference."
This program marks the beginning of an exciting new partnership between ReimaginEd Collective and UCL Edtech Labs, which will provide a unique opportunity for participants to develop their products and ideas.
The application is open, with admission taking place on a rolling basis. For more information, please check https://www.reimagined.cc/reimagined-lab.
About ReimaginED Collective
The ReimaginED Collective is a thesis-driven, founder-focused ecosystem enabler for seeding and scaling education technology ventures poised to create global educational impact, starting with the MENA region.
The Collective is driven by three principles: first, that education technology (EdTech) built by entrepreneurs who have a deep understanding of local conditions and context is best positioned to radically improve outcomes for learners in the MENA region; second, that the GCC member states’ push to build entrepreneurial ecosystems will be accelerated by a focused effort to nurture local entrepreneurial talent and networks focused specifically on EdTech; and third, that success in addressing the first two principles will reduce the burden on ailing public systems by creating exciting and innovative ventures, in turn, making a dent in the youth unemployment crisis in the MENA region, the highest in the world at 27%.
About UCL Edtech Labs
UCL Edtech Labs is a UCL-led programme that connects the learning innovations community to the world’s best educational research and entrepreneurial practice, developing and growing the brightest learning and teaching innovators whose visions are to fundamentally reshape how people learn. Its pioneering approach aims to build and develop world-class EdTech products and services, based on what works for teachers and learners.
Enabling entrepreneurs to develop and grow, creating the very best products that are tried and tested with the learner at the heart. UCL Edtech labs is supported by Santander Universities, KnowledgeHook, AWS and IDEALondon, and is in an alliance with University College London. For further information, visit www.UCLedtechlabs.com