MINOV Scholarship | Fund Your Prototype & Startup

Bring your functional prototype to life!

Call for Applications - Minov Scholarship

Are you a student at Mines Saint-Étienne and leading an innovative project? The MINOV grant helps you fund your first technical developments before creating your start-up, or up to one year after it is created.

This financial support enables you to produce a proof of concept, an MVP (Minimum Viable Product) or a prototype, in order to validate the relevance of your solution with your target market.

Why apply?

The MINOV grant includes:

Up to €10,000 in funding per project
Personalised support with the TEAM incubator
Mentoring by an alumnus or a patron of the Fondation Mines-Télécom
An opportunity to structure your project and increase your chances of success

Who can apply?

To be eligible for the MINOV grant, you must:

be an ICM or ISMIN engineering student at Mines Saint-Étienne;
have National Student-Entrepreneur Status (SNEE) or have started the process to obtain it;
not have created your company, or have created it less than one year ago.

What is the grant for?

The MINOV grant funds concrete development actions (examples):

producing a proof of concept
developing an MVP
designing a functional prototype
technical services required to get started (development, product design, testing, etc.)

How to apply?

1) Prepare your application file

To be admissible, your application file must include:

the completed application form [Access the form]
a PowerPoint presentation of the project
the CV of all team members
a detailed projected budget, including a breakdown of the requested funds
an action plan, explaining how the grant will be used over one year
quotes from the identified service providers

2) Submit your application

Send your application file before the deadline, then take part in a two-stage selection process.

Individual preparatory interview with the TEAM incubator team.
10-minute pitch to the selection committee, followed by 10 minutes of Q&A with committee members.

2026 schedule

March 1^st – Launch of the call for applications
March 27 – Online information meeting to present the call for applications and answer candidates’ questions.
March 31 – Application submission deadline
April 16 – Selection committee & pitch to the jury
May 1^st – start of the support programme with your mentor

A springboard to success!

Thanks to the MINOV grant, you receive financial support with no equity taken and strategic guidance to bring your entrepreneurial ambition to life with peace of mind.