WCBA Frequently Asked Questions
The Westchester County Biosciences Accelerator (WCBA) is always free for our invited participants! We will never require an entrance/application or participation fee. You will be required to cover transportation costs to in person events.
WCBA is open to all stages of biosciences ventures including biotech, med device, pharma, digital health, diagnostics, and materials. We provide customized learning and networking opportunities for each venture.
We work with ventures at all stages, from early to late-stage ventures; primarily, we work with first-time founders and provide foundational support for the growth of their ventures.
The WCBA program does not currently offer direct funds to any ventures within the program – we connect ventures to potential investors and non-dilutive funding and offer them the tools to drive their own success when fundraising.
Never! All participants who are invited to the program have full control and ownership of their IP; we will never ask to own equity in the ventures that apply to or participate in WCBA. To ensure there’s never any issues with IP we operate with non-confidential information.
Alums join an expanding network of continued support – both from their founder peers and the WCBA team. We encourage alums to join panels and events, and we continue to share news on our alums to help boost their visibility efforts. WCBA may only be for 6-months, but involvement in our cooperative network can last a lifetime.
We encourage first time founders to apply during our early admission period, from June – August to ensure we can assist with questions regarding WCBA or application development. Our last admission deadline for WCBA 2023 is October 24, 2022.
The program takes place over 6-months following application, screening, and invitation. The kickoff educational ‘bootcamp’ occurs 2-days per week for 3 weeks in January. Please plan for an in-person bootcamp experience* of at least 8 hours per day. The WCBA 2023 Program schedule is available on the WCBA website. Please note that dates and times are subject to change.
Participants should budget a full day, the equivalent of 8-12 hours, each week to participate in the WCBA program. This includes your weekly coaching session; this can last up to 3-4 hours at a time depending on the content reviewed and discussed. Note that the aforementioned 8-12 hours does not refer to a continuous length of time, but rather dispersed throughout the week.
* Change based on ongoing health concerns
The program includes a customized structured curriculum program supplemented by small team-based coaching and one-on-one mentorship. You will learn from your coach, mentors (experts in areas that you need assistance), as well as other ventures. This process helps ventures think through their business, develop solutions and drive results in a collaborative manner.