UW CSE For Students Starting Companies

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Students who are considering starting companies must consult with their advisor, and with the Commercialization Oversight Committee and the Chair. (Don't stop with your advisor -- advisors don't always communicate with the COC and the Chair, and the department has an interest in your status.)

There are several reasons for this, all of which relate to the protection of the student rather than to any desire on the University's part to grab hold of your ideas!

• Commercialization is strictly secondary for us -- the educational mission is foremost. Outside activities can adversely affect your academic progress. This is a concern of your advisor, your committee, and the department as a whole. Expectations can only be set through open discussion.
• If you are transferring technology, you want to make sure that you own that technology free-and-clear. For example, when Brian Pinkerton sold WebCrawler (and himself) to AOL, the process began with a letter from OTL certifying that UW had no claim on the technology. The department can help with this.
• Federal guidelines establish certain conflict-of-interest obligations with which students must comply.
• And as a state institution, we have certain "public trust" responsibilities that we must all work together to uphold.
• There are certain types of activity that are incompatible with your status as a student.

"Full, early, and continuous disclosure" is the only sensible way to proceed. It will reduce the chance of accidents.

	Computer Science & Engineering University of Washington Box 352350 Seattle, WA  98195-2350 (206) 543-1695 voice, (206) 543-2969 FAX [comments to lazowska]