Many business school applicants plan to begin their own ventures one day, so in this week’s Trivia Tuesday, we’ll take a look at some of the hands-on new venture funding and entrepreneurial learning experiences available to students at Ross and Johnson.
The Wolverine Venture Fund (WVF) at Michigan’s Ross School of Business is one of the largest University-based venture funds in the nation. Under the guidance of approximately two dozen MBA students, plus faculty members and an advisory board of professional venture capitalists, the multi-million dollar fund provides seed funding to early stage companies. In addition to tracking the performance of companies currently in the fund’s portfolio, participating students help evaluate business plans for new companies and make investment decisions. Participation in the WVF is a great way to gain hands-on experience in entrepreneurship, investment management and venture capital, since students are involved in all stages of the fund’s work. The fund also serves as a valuable networking opportunity, since students work closely with the successful venture capitalists and entrepreneurs on the advisory board, while also coming into contact with the leaders of the companies in the WVF portfolio.
Although many business schools offer students the opportunity to manage an investment fund or have resources to connect students with successful entrepreneurs, few involve students directly in venture funding decisions. Perhaps the most comparable program is Big Red Ventures at Cornell University’s Johnson School, which involves Johnson MBA students in evaluating, funding and mentoring startup businesses.
Big Red Ventures partners with promising entrepreneurs, particularly Cornell alumni or those otherwise connected with the school, to assist them in transforming their ideas into commercially viable businesses. The fund does this through seed stage investments, which typically range from $50,000 to $250,000. The purpose and structure of Big Red Ventures is similar to that of the Ross School’s Wolverine Venture Fund, however, Cornell asserts that while other schools have VC funds, Big Red Ventures is the only to accord “full management responsibility to its students.” With millions of dollars at their disposal and an advisory board of venture capital, law, finance, and operations professionals, Cornell’s student fund managers gain valuable venture capital experience, evaluating business plans and allocating funding as they would on the job.
One notable difference between the two programs is that Johnson’s Big Red Ventures uses money donated by the school to invest in companies, with fund returns then reinvested in the Johnson School’s endowment. In contrast, the original funding for the WVF came from the Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies, and investment returns are usually reinvested in the Fund.
For more information on entrepreneurial support or hands-on venture funding experiences available at the leading programs, be sure to check out their websites or the Clear Admit School Guides!
