Accelerate to Industry

Accelerate to Industry is an innovative approach to workforce training for graduate students. First developed by the North Carolina State University through a National Science Foundation grant, this program connects graduate students and postdoctoral scholars with industry companies to explore employment opportunities. The program helps graduate students and postdoctoral scholars develop the business, leadership, and communication skills that companies seek in new employees.

In A2i, we use the term “industry” as an umbrella term encompassing business, government, and nonprofit companies and agencies.

The mission of A2i is to:

Prepare graduate students and postdoctoral scholars for the wide range of available industry careers
Help Penn State graduate students and postdoctoral researchers secure industry jobs
Build a program that serves as a touch point for long-term collaborative relationships between industry and universities

Information for Students

Information for Industry Partners

Immersion Week

A2i Modules

A2i seeks to bridge the gaps between traditional academic training and industry employment readiness through five training modules. These modules provide a range of career and professional development opportunities for graduate students and postdoctoral scholars to build their skills and engage with industry partners at all stages of their careers.

Learn about A2i modules

Upcoming Events

The Graduate School hosts Job Search Strategies Workshops every fall and spring semester, and Immersion Week during the week after the spring semester. Learn about those programs and more.

Learn more

“A2i showed me that I have value as a person and a scholar and a potential employee right now. I don’t need to wait until I get my degree or until I have 10 years of experience. Who I am and what I do now is meaningful, and I learned that I should not take myself out of the running for a career before I have a chance to see where it might go.”