From PhD to enterprise: reflections on the entrepreneurial journey

This session consists of testimonials by people who established their own company after their PhD. They will tell you their personal story: Why did they decide to become an entrepreneur after their PhD? How does this fit into their career? Which obstacles did they encounter when transitioning to entrepreneurship? What would they do differently now? Are they still happy with their choices? Obviously, they will also say something about their own enterprise, but they will not go into technical details or specific research issues. 

Since there is variety among the speakers regarding their academic background, PhD researchers from all doctoral schools are welcome to join this session. In addition, both young, more experienced and (inter)national entrepreneurs will take the floor. 

After the testimonials there will be a panel session, in which the speakers comment on certain statements. The participants are invited to ask questions and to interact. 

Programme:

09:30 - 10u00      Introductory word by the Doctoral Schools and Tech Transfer Office

10:00 - 10:20      Testimonial by Prof dr. Nele Jacobs (PhD in biomedical sciences at UHasselt in 2011, CEO of Faresa)

10:20 - 10:40      Testimonial by dr. Shameer Pradhan (PhD in Business Informatics at UHasselt in 2026, CEO of Enterlio)

10:40 - 11:00      BREAK

11:00 - 11:20      Testimonial by dr. Niels Bessemans (PhD in bioscience engineering at KU Leuven in 2018, Co-founder & CEO at Optiflux) 

11u20-12u00      Panel session

12u00-12u15      Final Q&A

12:15 - 13:30      Sandwich lunch

This event is part of the career week 2026. The Career Week is a joint initiative of the Doctoral Schools and HR Department. During this week, it’s all about exploring your opportunities, discovering which career path suit you and preparing for a better transition after finishing your PhD. The full programme can be viewed by clicking on the red button on top of this page. 

Learning outcomes

After having attended this session, you will ...

• have a better idea which aspects to take into account when considering entrepreneurship as a career choice,
• know which competences and skills are relevant as an entrepreneur.

Competences

An important part of preparing for any further professional step is becoming (more) aware of the competences you have developed and/or want to develop. In the current workshop, the following competences from the UHasselt competency overview are actively dealt with:

• personal effectiveness:
  • entrepreneurship
  • self-development
  • self-confidence

For whom?

• The specific target group consists of PhD students and postdocs, but everyone who is interested is welcome to attend.

When & where ?

• October 8, 2026 - 09:30-13:30
• campus Diepenbeek (room tba) 
• sandwich lunch: Wintertuin (restaurant) from 12:15 onwards

Registration?

• Registration is possible via this link from June 15 until September 18, 2026. 
• There is no maximum of participants, so if registered you are sure to be able to participate.
• Please cancel your registration at least one week in advance in case you cannot make it (cf. cancellation & no-show policy).

Acknowledged as?

• DS BSH: category 'career management & personal development' - workshop on career management
• DS HLS: category 'transferable skills' - half of a course on transferable skills
• DS ST: category 'career & personal development' - course about career development

This workshop is organised in cooperation with the UHasselt Valorisation Academy. Their programme (2026-2027) will be finalised soon.