The University Founder Fellowship

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Idea

Product Market Fit

The application will be open in the fall.

We’ve designed a program with the world’s best practitioners to help founders learn by doing. At the conclusion of the fellowship, teams should be equipped to articulate their progress and pitch their product.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

Teams should be 2 - 4 members. At least 1 member must be a full-time student in the current academic year and at least 1 member must be willing to write software.
Each team will receive a $25,000 investment at the start of the fellowship. Teams do NOT need to be incorporated to apply; we will help accepted teams incorporate to be able to receive our investment.
Teams that decide to continue together after the conclusion of the fellowship are eligible for a $1,000,000 investment.
The fellowship runs for 14 weeks from February to May with biweekly workshops. The first and last sessions are in person in Menlo Park (travel expenses paid).

Unusual Ventures is the premier seed-stage VC. Designed from the ground up to support founders at the earliest stage of their journey, we are the investors and founders behind companies such as

Program overview

Learn from expert practitioners

The Unusual University Fellowship is built on a “see one, do one, teach one” philosophy. Learn from successful experts in the core disciplines of company building: idea validation, early sales, product positioning, design, leadership and fundraising. This program is designed to provide a type of hands-on learning that an academic setting simply cannot.

Build with Unusual's support

We invest in you so that you can learn the essential skills of company building. We’ve designed a series of interactive workshops and tools that enable aspiring founders to learn the most essential entrepreneurial skills. Use funds, expert coaching, and proven processes to take your vision and advance it to a startup with product-market fit.  

Connect with fellow founders

Our workshops have a “teach one” element that facilitates learning from your peers. You’ll present your learnings to your cohort who will provide thoughtful feedback throughout the program. Plus, you’ll join our thriving community of founders who are there to be a resource for you whenever you need.

This program is so different from anything out there. It’s the perfect setup to get tailor-made mentorship from the very best early stage company builders. The thoughtful content, funding and interactive workshops, combined with the flexibility to participate while still in school is the ideal recipe.

Questions we get asked

How does this program compliment what I learn in school?
Do I need to have an incorporated company to participate?
How much time per week or per month do I need to commit to participate?  
Do my teammates need to go to the same school?  Do we need to be full-time students?
Can team members reside internationally?  
How far along does my company need to be for me to apply?
Does my company/idea have to be in a certain sector for me to be eligible to apply?

The application will be open in the fall.

Apply now to have the opportunity to learn from expert founders, connect with your peers, and build your company. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the final deadline: January 1, 2023.

Meet the team behind our story