NEXT Innovation Scholars

Actionable, human-centered insights that inform front-end innovation decisions and long-term strategy.

Our transdisciplinary student teams perform both desk and field research to understand the landscape surrounding an innovation challenge and build empathy with stakeholders. We interview consumers, observe behaviors with products and use rapid ideation to generate creative concepts. This approach allows us to present our clients with research-backed, human-centered insights and recommendations for new products, strategies and approaches to solving problems.

Divergent and convergent explorations of existing, proposed or speculative concepts and solutions.

NIS can help partners reframe existing ideas in need of a new direction and push existing concepts to the next level through rapid ideation, prototyping and testing for user feedback. These projects are fast-paced and designed to harness the raw creativity and fresh perspectives of our student project teams.

Research-driven analysis of macrotrends, signals of change and the implications of multiple possible futures.

Each year, NIS students analyze hundreds of timely articles, media and other data from a wide variety of sources to identify signals of change with the potential to shape the future. These signals help us identify large-scale shifts with social, economic, technological and political implications, then explore and map multiple scenarios for what the future could look like. Our research is packaged and shared broadly in articles, reports and immersive events, but can also be adapted to client projects and customized to specific industries and domains.

Interactive workshops, trainings and experiences that unlock innovation potential and empower new approaches.

NIS leads workshops and training experiences focused on human-centered design and innovation, crafted to teach new skills and help participants incorporate innovation into their personal and professional lives. These trainings range from one hour to multiple days and can be customized for the needs of student groups, community partners and corporate teams.

Students accepted into NIS commit to fulfilling the following requirements to the highest personal and professional standards:

• Scholars can expect to dedicate a significant amount of time each week to the program. Weekly activities could look like:         
  • Participating in 1-2 weekly project meetings
  • Working outside of project meetings both individually and with your team to advance project deliverables (conducting research, completing stakeholder interviews, analyzing data, etc.)
  • Preparing and presenting work for external partners
  • Working with program leadership to plan and execute events
  • Attending 2 full cohort meetings each month

• Maintain at least a 3.3 cumulative GPA and full-time student status in the fall and spring semesters
  • Actively and professionally participate in all required meetings, projects and activities
  • Meet deadlines, complete assigned work and respond promptly to communications
  • Consistently demonstrate integrity, collaboration, accountability and professionalism
  • Contribute to a supportive, engaged innovation community and represent NIS with excellence

Program participation and scholarship eligibility are reviewed annually, and year one is provisional. Failure to meet academic and professional standards may lead to loss of scholarship or removal.

Acceptance to NEXT Innovation Scholars is highly competitive by design. Applications open each fall, with new cohort members announced in the spring, onboarded during the summer and beginning scholarships and programming the next fall.

Applications for incoming first-year students are by invitation only and will be sent in late fall semester. Applications for current UC students open in fall in Scholarship Universe. Current UC students must have a minimum of two full years left in their undergraduate degree program in the fall of the upcoming academic year and meet the minimum 3.3 GPA requirement.

Strong academics matter, but they’re just the starting point. Our students are:

• Curious and adaptable, with an interest in learning beyond a single discipline
• Collaborative, prioritizing shared outcomes over individual recognition
• Action-oriented, willing to carry ideas through to execution
• Professional, self-aware and open to feedback
• Thoughtful about innovation and its role in shaping the modern world

Applications for the 2026-2027 NIS cohort are now closed. Students considering our next cohort should check back in fall 2026 and follow NIS on social media for updates.