UIF Twente | University Innovation Fellows

Welcome to UIF Twente

The University Innovation Fellows (UIF) program is a global movement empowering students and faculty to become leaders of change in higher education. Through design thinking, futures perspectives and change leadership, Fellows create opportunities that help their peers build creative confidence, strengthen innovation ecosystems and shape a better future.

Students from all disciplines and academic levels — from first-year students to PhD candidates — join UIF to develop the attitudes, skills and knowledge needed to navigate a complex world and create meaningful impact.

Founded in 2012 and now connecting thousands of Fellows worldwide, UIF entered a new chapter in 2025 when the University of Twente, through DesignLab, became the global home of the program, supported by its founding partners from Stanford d.school.

At the University of Twente, we believe meaningful change starts with people working across perspectives and disciplines. Through UIF Twente, students, faculty and partners collaborate to strengthen our innovation ecosystem and create opportunities that improve education and campus life.

UIF Twente is part of a growing international community where local initiatives connect to global impact.

Curious about the story, mission and global journey of UIF? Explore our About UIF page.

Our team

We are a large team with 43 Fellows from 8 different cohorts. Do you want to get to know us? Check out our UIF Twente family.

Running Projects

Sustainability dialogues A series of dialogue meetings among different stakeholders within the university. Representatives of the Strategy and Policy, Marketing & Communication, Sustainability & Development and other university departments are involved in this dialogue.
Snooze The vision for the project is to have sleeping capsules with a booking system so that students can get 15-30 min sleep within a day in this way 'recharging the brain'. Before purchasing expensive capsules, the cohort tests the hypothesis by building a low-tech version of the nap space that includes 'levitating' beds and space dividers.
Innovate your education Innovating our educational system and the educational content is something that both students, professors and institutions as well as the society as a whole care about. As an entrepreneurial university, the University of Twente has set innovation in education in the center of its operations, by creating events on building new creating ideas, entrepreneurial and negotiation trainings, taking part in the European Consortium for Innovative Universities and much more.
Ubuntu Student wellbeing and community building are important for a university ecosystem. To develop that feeling, multiple social activities were organized, attempting to bring the students together and to raise their spirit of belongingness among each other.

Want to see more of what we are working on and what we have done? Take a look at our projects page!

Questions?

Questions or curious to learn more? Reach out to us at contact@universityinnovationfellows.nl or connect with one of our active Fellows. As a community of changemakers, we’re here to support and help you on your journey.