The Crocker Innovation Fellows Program is a nine-month work/study program in
entrepreneurship and innovation that selects 16-20 outstanding BYU engineering, science,
business and law students to study innovation and entrepreneurship. During the summer,
each student has a paid summer work assignment in an innovative company, providing
students with hands-on innovation and entrepreneurial experience.
General Criteria for Participating Start-ups
In order to qualify as a mentor company for the Crocker Innovation Fellows Program, your
company must be:

Preferably located in the Utah region although other high growth regions such as the
San Francisco Bay Area are acceptable;

Engaged in significant innovation or at an early stage of growth (either as a pre-IPO
start-up or having gone public within the past 3 years); and

In a high-potential, growth-oriented business.
In general, qualified companies will have fewer than 250 people and revenue below $100
million/year. The ideal company was initially funded by a venture capital firm or by
sophisticated investors.
Mentoring Relationships and Reporting Structure
BYU requests that each Crocker Innovation Fellow is assigned a senior level mentor within
the company / start-up (e.g., CEO, VP, or founder). Although an individual Crocker
Innovation Fellow may have daily supervision by another employee, it is critical to the
success of the program that each student have a senior internal sponsor concerned with his
or her welfare and activities. For example, a mentor will normally have a weekly or biweekly
"1-1" with the student to check progress and goals.
Quality of Work Assignments
Crocker Innovation Fellows are some of the most accomplished and dedicated students at
BYU. They often have Bachelor's degrees and sometimes partial completion of a Masters
degree. They have gone through a rigorous admission process and have completed a
comprehensive course on innovation challenges in growth companies. Smart employers will
take advantage of this fact and create assignments that allow the student to demonstrate
his or her innovation and design skills. Often, senior managers have critical projects in
technical and operating functions that sit on the margin of organizational resources. A
Crocker Innovation Fellow could be given the responsibility to fulfill one of these high impact
projects. Everyone involved in the Crocker Innovation Fellows Progam is aware that menial
tasks are part of life in an entrepreneurial environment. However, this program strives for
special, mutually beneficial relationships between the student and the company. We seek to
maximize the students' learning and their contribution to the venture's success. We have
found that it works best if the entire company has an understanding of the Crocker
Innovation Fellows Program, to maximize the value of the placement for both the student
and the company.
Compensation
Mentor companies typically pay interns approximately $5,000 - 10,000 during the summer
internship for three months of work, although the exact amount is flexible.
Process and Timeline
Interested companies with the above characteristics place themselves in the pool of
employers by filling out a short application. Starting in February, students and employers
are introduced to one another through a password-protected section of the website. The
selection process is in full swing by the month of March. At the sole discretion of the
employers, offers are made to students during the early spring, and students have generally
accepted a job by late March or early April. The company employs the student full-time
during the summer (May/June to Aug). In the Fall semester, employers sometimes
participate from time to time in the course as guest speakers or case participants.
Respect for Intellectual Property
In all aspects of the program, BYU endeavors to protect the intellectual property of
companies in a professional and rational manner. All class discussions are treated with
extreme sensitivity to this issue. Our mission is to expose BYU students to the
entrepreneurial process in a variety of high technology ventures, not to put participating
companies at risk.