BEN-GURION UNIVERSITY | THE WAY FORWARD

living laboratory in which students will not just learn about ecosystems – they will live and work in them, gaining first-hand experience in water sciences, sustainable agriculture, and renewable energy. This immersive environment will ensure that the program’s graduates possess the required skills, experience, and confidence to address resource scarcity and utilization on a global scale, serving as leaders in sustainability The student experience stands out at BGU, where opportunities for students to broaden their horizons, test their limits, take on new responsibilities, and grow are all around them. Below we highlight some of the unique opportunities and share how our donors have ensured their success. Innovation and Entrepreneurship Yazamut 360° is the address for innovation and entrepreneurship at BGU. Since its establishment in 2019 with a grant from Israel’s Council for Higher Education, Yazamut 360° has gone from strength to strength. Starting with one program and 300 students, today it has 13 active programs, and 5,000 students participate in these programs annually. The term Yazamut 360° is now synonymous with the terms of innovation and entrepreneurship in Israeli academia, and more recently, beyond Israel’s borders, as the entrepreneurship center has expanded its footprint and is implementing programs around the world. Its impact and reach were highlighted in a study by the Stanford Graduate School of Business that ranked BGU first in Israel and third in the world outside of the US for its graduates’ odds of founding unicorn companies. The center’s partners include donors who believe in Yazamut’s power to transform dreams into reality, bring brilliant ideas to fruition, and instill entrepreneurial mindsets and skills and an innovation orientation in anyone, but especially among BGU’s students. These visionary donors have facilitated Yazamut’s growth over the years, bringing it to its current status as a center of excellence at the University. in Israel or their home countries. THE STUDENT EXPERIENCE

Yazamut 360 o Growth, 2019-2026

1 13 programs

300

5,000

students

2 21 student-led communities

Yazamut 360° stands out among other academic entrepreneurship centers, raising the bar and setting a new standard, empowering students, as well as faculty, researchers, and staff, with skills, experience, and confidence. While other entrepreneurship centers typically focus only on startup creation, at Yazamut, the participants are the focus, and involvement in its programs is often life changing. For students, the experience is a significant component of their education, shaping their identity as students, BGU alumni, and professionals. Each student that participates in a Yazamut 360° program chooses to do so, and in most cases, they receive no academic credit for their efforts. The experiential and immersive programs demand a huge amount from students, but the ROI makes it all worthwhile. Students acquire valuable leadership, public speaking, interpersonal, critical thinking, and decision-making skills. They learn how to work independently and as a team, work under pressure, succeed, and fail. Participation in the programs is both eye-opening and door opening for students, with VCs snatching up Cactus Capital participants.

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