The NYU Entrepreneurial Institute is proud to announce the launch of the Max Stenbeck Venture Equity Program, which aims to help a diverse set of founders from all backgrounds learn the fundamentals of fundraising. Accepted participants will partake in four interactive workshops and panels from investors and seasoned founders.
Background:
There continues to be a massive gap in the amount of venture capital invested in startups led by women, BIPOC and other underrepresented founders, relative to their peers. As of Sept. 22, 2022, only 2% of venture funding in 2022 has gone to ventures led by women only, while funding to Black founder-led startups represents just 1.2%. While the majority of ventures supported at NYU’s Entrepreneurial Institute are led by Women and founders who are People of Color, far fewer receive venture funding.
The Max Stenbeck Venture Equity program aims to arm NYU founders committed to diversity, equity and inclusion in entrepreneurship with knowledge to assess for themselves whether venture funding is a fit for their venture and if so, to equip them with tools and empower them to have a successful fundraising process in the future.
What is it?
The Max Stenbeck Venture Equity Program is a four workshop series focusing on best practices and mechanics of venture fundraising. The lectures, workshops and panels will be led by venture backed entrepreneurs, investors, startup lawyers, and experienced startup operators. Both during and after the program, participants will have the opportunity to meet investors and other advisors through office hours and coaching.
When/where will it take place?
The program will be held virtually (via Zoom), from approximately 4-6pm ET on Wednesdays (Nov. 1st, Nov. 8th, Nov. 29th & Dec. 6th).
Who is it for?
The program is designed for founders building scalable ventures who are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion in entrepreneurship who have never raised from institutional investors. The program is built for venture founders that have early indications of product/market fit and will be ready to raise funding in the next 6 months. If you have raised an angel or friends & family round and want to get ready to pitch to institutional venture capitalists, this program is also for you.
The program is open to all interested NYU students, faculty, staff and recent alumni (within 2 years of graduating NYU) who are building highly scalable, for profit ventures, and who have conducted rigorous customer discovery to validate problem-solution fit. At a minimum, to be considered founders should have created an MVP/Beta which they're actively testing/ piloting with customers. Those who are alum of our Tech Venture Program and Startup Accelerator Program will receive extra consideration. All ventures meeting these criteria are eligible to apply to the program. Those ventures run by women, non-binary, Black, LatinX and LGBTQ+ founders are encouraged to apply.
Ventures at an earlier stage are highly encouraged to apply for a Startup Bootcamp (for students) or Tech Venture Workshop (for full time faculty/PhD/researchers) to take the first steps toward validating the needs of their future customers and designing the right solution to fit their needs.
Learn more about the program and eligibility requirements via the program website.
What are the next steps?
Learn more about the program here, read about those who were accepted to the program last year, and apply today! Applications are open until October 2nd at 6pm (mark your calendars).
