The Ganesha Lab works with UNAB Biotechnology students
The Ganesha Lab is working alongside Biotechnology Engineering students and faculty at Universidad Andrés Bello (UNAB), supporting students who are developing their final degree projects through the Entrepreneurship-based Graduation Pathway.
What does it take to turn scientific knowledge into solutions that can create real-world impact?
Biotechnology students have a strong scientific foundation, but developing a viable solution requires looking beyond the lab. It means understanding the problem, identifying the potential customer, understanding what they need, and determining whether the proposed solution actually addresses that need.
At Universidad Andrés Bello (UNAB), Biotechnology Engineering students can develop their final degree projects through the Entrepreneurship-based Graduation Pathway. This allows them to work on their projects as ventures while they are still being developed, rather than waiting until the scientific work is complete.
Through the mentoring process, students work on areas such as customer and market understanding, value proposition, and how to communicate their projects beyond their scientific foundations.
Connecting research and entrepreneurship
In the video, María Isabel Oliver Pavez, Director of Biotechnology Engineering at UNAB’s Viña del Mar campus, talks about the importance of developing the scientific and entrepreneurial dimensions together.
“It’s not just science or applied science. It’s science combined with an understanding of the management needed to bring a solution into the real world.”
Dr. Adrián Moreno, Academic Secretary of Biotechnology, describes the profile they aim to develop as one capable of connecting what he calls “two worlds”: research and business.
Thank you to Universidad Andrés Bello for trusting The Ganesha Lab to be part of this work, and to María Isabel Oliver Pavez, Adrián Moreno, and the students who took the time to talk with us and share their experiences for this story.
This work is carried out within the framework of UNAB’s Ciencia e Innovación para el 2030 project, supported by Chile’s Ministry of Science through ANID.