If you’ve been thinking of becoming a startup leader or entrepreneur capable of positively impacting your community or another, the aspiration is in reach with Venture For America! Our two-year Fellowship gives you the chance to work a full-time salaried job at a startup in one of our 13 cities while growing professionally with other Fellows.
What is the Venture For America Fellowship?
TL;DR: The Venture For America Fellow program is a two-year crash course on becoming a startup leader or founder, and building an entrepreneurial mindset.
From figuring out the ins and outs of marketing campaigns and customer service to getting a behind–the–scenes look at the number crunching that keeps a business afloat, our Fellowship is for builders who want to becoming the country’s next great innovators and entrepreneurs. This prospect may excite you, but it also comes with a host of questions.
In the sections below, our Talent Team answers some of the most common questions about our Fellowship program so you can feel confident when applying.
What are some of the top qualities that you look for in prospective candidates and how can they prepare?
Venture For America might be for you if…
- Innovation, creative thinking, and entrepreneurship excite you
- The typical career path doesn’t appeal to you: you want to work at a startup and/or start your own business
- You have a desire to contribute to and live in one of our 13 emerging ecosystems
- You’re an impact maker: you have experience setting goals, reaching them, and leaving things better than you found them
- Those who know you best would describe you as self-aware, resilient, and a self-starter
- You love learning, feedback, and working on a team
…and you meet our eligibility requirements, including being a U.S. citizen, DACA recipient, or permanent resident and have graduated within three years of the application or will graduate with your undergraduate degree.
To prepare, think about concrete examples of when you’ve exemplified the qualities listed above, and be ready to write and speak about them. In addition, check out our Fellow Roadmap for each step of our process to ensure your success.
How competitive is Venture For America?
Venture For America is highly selective versus competitive in our Selection process. Our Fellows come from all academic and socioeconomic backgrounds. All kinds of skills can translate into success at a startup job, as long as you’re ready to try new things and learn on the go. If you’ve been a leader on campus, gained skills at internships or jobs, and care about finding a career where you make an impact, we encourage you to apply.
What’s the typical Venture For America Fellow salary?
The median salary for the Class of 2023 was $56,000 and when comparing Alumni (ages 24 to 30), the median was $75,000. VFA requires all Company Partners to compensate Fellows competitively and fairly, in addition to providing health insurance or a stipend for health insurance, while some Company Partners have also been known to provide equity stakes as well.
Does Venture For America place Fellows into startups? How do Fellows get jobs?
Venture For America does not place Fellows into startups. Instead, rather than assign you to a city or role, VFA hosts what’s called Connect. Fellows log into a private, online job platform where they can apply to hundreds of opportunities across our 13 cities.
What do Fellows do after their Fellowship at Venture For America?
Many Fellows choose their own path after VFA. Some become leaders within the startup community and continue growing within their own organizations or join others in a leadership role (i.e. COO, senior project manager). Others start their own organizations and companies and use resources that VFA provides to build their own business. They even go to graduate school or even join a larger organization (i.e. Google, Amazon). Here is a list of the startup companies, groups, and organizations that employ Venture For America talent.
What kinds of jobs and industries do your Company Partners have and represent? How does VFA choose its Company Partners?
The top roles fluctuate but a sizable portion usually fall in the realm of operations and project management, sales and business development, and account management. The top industries are often software, health, and education.
VFA chooses Company Partners by gauging a few criteria:.
- Quality of the leadership: What is the company’s reputation in the local startup ecosystem? How connected are they to VFA’s mission and values?
- Quality of the role: Is it a good match for the experiences and skills a recent grad has?
- Manager experience: Have they managed someone before? Are they skilled in a particular area and could provide mentorship in that area?
- Organizational culture and employee development: Do they have a clear commitment to and outcomes in diversity and inclusion? Do they support internal employee development, mentorship, and learning opportunities?
- Financial health: Would they be able to pay our Fellows? For how long?
Still interested in learning more? Check out our apply page for helpful guidance on applying and other information like application deadlines. You can also view previous webinar recordings on topics like salary and jobs.