The Israel Innovation Authority’s program to return academics, in its effort to bring high quality human capital back to Israel, recently launched a new program intended to help Israeli entrepreneurs and academics abroad return to Israel and acclimate to Israel’s industry and academia. Called the “mentor program,” it brings together academics who wish to return to Israel with “mentors” – representatives of companies working with the Israel Innovation Authority and academics who returned to Israel over the years with the help of the program. The latter share from their own experience returning home and settling into the workforce and research environments.
According to Dr. Nurit Eyal, director of the program to return academics, “every year, hundreds from academia and industry return to Israel, fulfilling a desire to come back home and find employment appropriate to their education and skills. We help many return and contribute their know-how and skills to the Israeli economy and society. This has had a growing impact on Israel’s scientific leadership in the world.”
In addition to the guidance from mentors, the program also opened a Facebook group, entitled “Returning to Israel – a friend brings a friend to jobs in the industry,” intended to enable the community of veteran returnees to help recent arrivals find work, and to help the companies where they work absorb more high quality employees returning from abroad. This, in addition to the group “Returning to Israel – Questions and Answers,” that has been highly successful helping returnees with their day-to-day questions related to returning to Israel, is creating a community, and more.
The program to return academics also offers other benefits like personal guidance, help with job searches in conjunction with more than 340 companies and guidance in areas such as resume building, and career guidance workshops.
The International Geek PicNic Festival in Jerusalem, run by Innovative Israel.