FAQ

Application Process

WHO CAN APPLY?

Undergraduate and graduate students in degree-bearing programs at MIT or any of our partner universities in Hong Kong (CityU, CUHK, EdUHK, HKBU, HKU, HKUST, LingU, PolyU)
Selection preference will be made for undergraduate students who are in their third year of study (junior year) or above.

WHEN IS THE DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS?

For MIT Students

Applications open: September 20, 2024. Click to apply.
Applications close: October 25, 2024
Info-session:Watch the recording here
Interviews: On a rolling basis via ZOOM
Acceptance notifications: On a rolling basis. Accepted students must confirm their attendance within 48h.
Cohort Finalized: End-November 2024
Orientation for January 2024 Cohort: TBC

For Hong Kong Students

Applications open: September 20, 2024. Click to apply.
Applications close: November 22, 2024
Interviews: On a rolling basis via ZOOM
Acceptance notifications: On a rolling basis. Accepted students must confirm their attendance within 48h.
Cohort Finalized: End-November 2024
Orientation for January 2024 Cohort: TBC

WHAT DOES THE APPLICATION PROCESS INVOLVE?

The application process has two parts:

A one-minute Youtube video where you tell us your name, major, university you attend, what you enjoy in your academic studies (especially around making and entrepreneurship), and why you are interested in joining this program. YOU MUST UPLOAD THIS VIDEO TO YOUTUBE BEFORE YOU START FILLING OUT THE APPLICATION. Please make sure the Youtube video is not listed as Private; you can list it as Unlisted if you would like to exclude it from search engines.
The online application (15 – 30 minutes to fill out). (We highly recommend that you save your responses in another file in case you run into technical difficulties).

WILL THERE BE AN INTERVIEW PROCESS?

Yes. Selected applicants will be contacted via email to arrange an interview. The interview will last roughly 15 minutes. It is designed to ensure you have the right skillset to join the program, and to provide you with the chance to ask questions and get any further information regarding the program.

WHAT ARE THE SELECTION CRITERIA FOR SUCCESSFUL APPLICANTS?

Students who feel they get the most out of the experience are usually strong in one of the skills needed for hardware entrepreneurship (such as entrepreneurship skills, business and finance skills, design skills, or hardware, software and system engineering skills). They are:

Open-minded to new fields and expertise.
Strong team players who work well collaboratively under pressure and within short time frames.
Respectful towards those from different cultures, backgrounds, experiences, races, age groups, and fields of study.
Driven to solve real-world problems that will have a positive impact on the world.
Willing to put in the time, effort, and hard work to get the job done, no matter the obstacles.

IF I AM ACCEPTED, HOW MUCH TIME DO I HAVE TO DECIDE?

Within 48 hours of receiving your acceptance letter. Startup bootcamps at the MIT Hong Kong Innovation Node have always been significantly oversubscribed, with many more qualified candidates than we have room for. We understand that students need to formalize plans as quickly as possible, so your decision allows us to move quickly to draw candidates from the waitlist in the event you are no longer available.

DO I NEED TO BE AN ENGINEER TO PARTICIPATE?

No. Diversity is key in a founding team for a startup. Skills needed for a new hardware venture to succeed spans user experience and design, engineering, business skills. We had very successful participants from humanities backgrounds, and we strive to build a diverse cohort – not just with engineers.

DO I NEED TO BE ABLE TO SPEAK CANTONESE/ MANDARIN?

No. The program will be conducted in English. Students who speak Cantonese will find it helpful to get around in Hong Kong, but it is not a requirement.

DO I NEED AN IDEA TO APPLY?

For MIT Students: Yes, you do, preferably an idea with relevant application for the aviation sector. MEMSI this year will embed an extended innovation experience with the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks (HKSTP). To be eligible for the program as a MIT student, you will need to have a pre-formed startup team (with three active student members from MIT) and all three members of the team must be willing to join BOTH the MEMSI program (Jan 15 – 26) and the venture-building HKSTP Techathon+ (Jan 26 – 30).

TWO COMPONENTS, TWICE THE FUN! HOW DOES IT WORK?

Component 1: Design a venture proposal for the aviation sector

MEMSI is an educational experience (held from Jan 15-26, 2024) to apply the fundamentals of disciplined entrepreneurship towards real-world business challenges. The challenges will be proposed by our industry partner, the Airport Authority of Hong Kong. Students are expected to form new teams with international peers for the purpose of the learning simulation, work with mentors to uncover pain points, identify opportunities, and come up with a tech-enabled solution to be pitched at the Showcase.

Component 2: Compete in a global venture competition with your own startup idea (preferably aviation-focused)

As an extension to MEMSI, MIT students who are accepted will be able to pitch their own startup idea at the venture-building HKSTP Techathon+ (held from Jan 26-30), which brings together over 1000 programmers, engineers, designers, marketers, and entrepreneurs from universities worldwide; and you will be able to network and learn more about the region’s innovation ecosystem.

200+ disruptive ideas from around the globe
50+ industry practitioners present as mentors
HK$100,000 seed funding per team & HK$150,000 cash prize pool
A 3-day immersive bootcamp designed to ignite creativity and transform innovative ideas into startup ventures
A 2-day extended programme providing non-local participants with an opportunity to tap into Hong Kong’s innovation and technology community
Recommended areas of focus: (1) Sustainability & ESG; (2) Smart Cities; or (3) Digital Economy

To best leverage this IAP experience, MIT students who propose an aviation-focused startup idea for HKSTP Techathon+ in the above recommended areas of focus can use the MEMSI platform to further their customer discovery and validation from our industry partner. It is compulsory to participate in both components for MIT students. Flight and accommodation will be provided from January 14 check-in to January 30 check-out.

Due to this new arrangement, we will select participants based on their individual skills, backgrounds and startup team ideas.

For Hong Kong Students: Hong Kong students will only be required to join the MEMSI program itself (Jan 15 – 26). So you don’t need to be already working on an idea to apply! During MEMSI, you will work on a real-world problem proposed by our industry partner, the Airport Authority of Hong Kong. The application form will ask you to identify a problem you want to solve to understand what you care about.

DO I NEED A TEAM TO APPLY?

For MIT Students: Yes, you will need to have a pre-formed startup team (three active student members from MIT) to apply. Please read above for more details. All members of the team are required to submit their own application (please make sure to fill in the same team name).

For Hong Kong Students: No, this program is geared towards individual applicants for Hong Kong students. You will be assigned to a team at the start of the program with MIT peers.

IS THERE AN APPLICATION FEE?

There is no fee to apply to the program. However, once accepted into the program, you must do the following to secure your place in the following format:

For MIT students: you must purchase your air ticket to Hong Kong, which will be reimbursed upon successful completion of the program.
For HK students: submit a cash deposit of 1000HKD to MIT Hong Kong Innovation Node, which will be reimbursed to you upon successful program completion.

The MEMSI Program

CAN I WORK ON A PRE-EXISTING IDEA OR PROJECT?

No. Participants who come with preconceived ideas don’t get the full experience of the program, because their remade plans make the person less open to new input on what the market, customer, or teammates have to share with them. This program is designed to put the team before the idea — once the team is formed, then each team will collectively decide on what idea to work on.

HOW ARE TEAMS FORMED?

We run structured networking and brainstorming sessions to help the cohort form teams that are based on their interests in problems they want to solve. Each team will include 4-5 people and must include at least one MIT student and one student from a Hong Kong university. We strongly encourage teams to look at their skillsets, personal interests, and attributes to ensure they have a diverse, robust team with skills and interests that span a wide range.

ARE THERE RESTRICTIONS ON THE PRODUCTS I CAN PROTOTYPE?

No restrictions. You can build a prototype in MEMSI that demonstrates how your solution solves the industry pain point. It is not required for the prototype to be a complete first step towards a new product – it can showcase the user experience of the new product, or show how a part of that product might work.

WHO OWNS THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS TO MY PROJECT AT THE END?

Anything you create and build is yours to keep. MIT has no exclusive rights to anything created during the program.

DO TEAMS GO ON TO BUILD A REAL STARTUP BASED ON THEIR WORK AT THIS PROGRAM?

Our mission is to create entrepreneurs, not build startups. If members of a team choose to carry the project forward and continue working on it, it is entirely up to them. As an example, we had one team that ended up incorporating and continuing to work on solving a problem that they first started solving at a MEMSI session.

IF A STARTUP IS CREATED BASED ON MY WORK AT THIS PROGRAM, WILL I GET A SHARE OF THE EQUITY AND BE CONSIDERED A CO-FOUNDER?

No. Startup bootcamps at the MIT Hong Kong Innovation Node are educational programs with a strictly academic mission. As such, the project work completed during this program is considered a simulation. Working on a project in this program does not entitle any participant to make claims on a co-founder status, or their share of founder equity, regardless of their contribution during the program.

If your team (or part of it) decides to form a startup with your project, you should discuss who will/will not take part in the next phases, who will/will not be the co-founders, and what each person’s role, responsibility and contributions will include — founder equity conversations usually follow such ground work questions. Otherwise, just being a part of a team in this program does not entitle anyone retroactively to a share of the equity in a startup based on the team project. Your founder roles / responsibilities / equity discussions can start after the program concludes.

DO I NEED TO BRING MY OWN EQUIPMENT?

Bring your laptop and mobile device(s). We provide a range of hardware such as Arduino boards, sensors, various IoT modules and a range of tools and equipment that assemble everything.

ARE THERE PRIZES AT THE END?

Yes, the top teams will be awarded with prizes at the showcase which takes place on the last day of the program.

ARE THERE JUDGING CRITERIA?

Yes. We will share the judging criteria in the kickoff session for the program.

Travel, Accommodation & Visas

WILL ACCOMMODATION BE PROVIDED?

Accommodation is provided to MIT participants only.

In a hybrid program with MIT students participating remotely, accommodation will not be provided for any students in the cohort.

WHEN DO I CHECK-IN AND CHECK-OUT?

We cover MIT students’ accommodation as follows:

Earliest covered check-in date: Jan 14, 2024
Latest covered check-out date: Jan 30, 2024

You may extend your stay on either end of this duration at your own expense, and if the accommodation has availability to accommodate your request.

WHAT ARE THE PASSPORT AND VISA REQUIREMENTS?

For MIT students: You need a valid passport that is valid for travel for at least 6 months after your outbound flight to Hong Kong. If you are a US citizen and need to apply, please contact the passport division of the State Department. Routine service requires 4–6 weeks. For further information and application instructions, visit the State Department’s passport website. The MIT Hong Kong Innovation Node team will be partnering with MISTI China to support students through the visa process, and will provide more information upon acceptance to the program.

WHAT IS THE COST OF THIS PROGRAM?

Program and lodging costs are fully covered (for MIT students only).
For MIT students, travel between Boston to Hong Kong will be covered (with a cap) for participants in this program.
Students cover their own meals, local transportation, and incidental expenses.

HOW DO I MAKE TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS?

For MIT students:

Make your own flight arrangements
Provide us with a proof of purchase / receipt or invoice (the “deposit” to secure your place in the program)
Sean Gilbert from MISTI China will reimburse you up to the reimbursement cap upon successful completion of the program

We work with you to make sure that your travel arrangements to and from the accommodations site are in place.

DO I NEED TRAVEL INSURANCE?

MIT students partner with MISTI China to work with health insurance providers and make sure you are covered for the duration of your trip. In addition, MIT students are covered by International SOS for emergency assistance while traveling abroad.

For any further questions, please contact us here.