How it works
Eleven weeks inside a working venture fund.
The Investor Accelerator is the spine of a cohort. Around it sit the Masterclass, the Advanced Modules, Fireside Chats and the fund itself. Here is what is included and how a quarter actually runs.
The Investor Accelerator experience
Everything included when you join the program.
Learn
Investor Education Programs
- VC Masterclass
1 week, 5 days. Understand how venture capital actually works from sourcing to exits.
- Advanced VC Modules
16 core modules covering venture economics, fund structures, valuation, and portfolio strategy.
- Fireside Chats
Closed-door sessions with investors, founders, LPs, and operators sharing real decisions and lessons.
Invest
Investment Apprenticeship
- Join a Vertical Investment Team
Work within a focused sector alongside experienced investors.
- Startup Madness
Screen, discuss, and vote on live investment opportunities.
- Access High Volume Deal Flow
Access and contribute to a pipeline of ~5,000 startups per quarter.
- Operate as a Venture Partner
Run due diligence, speak with founders and customers, and form conviction.
- Weekly Partner Meetings
Present and debate the most promising deals with the fund's investment team.
- Investment Committee Participation
Present deals and participate in final investment decisions.
- Build a Real Track Record
Participate in up to 7 investments per quarter.
- Profit Sharing Agreement
Participate in the upside of cohort investments.
Grow
Network & Access
- Welcome Dinner in Munich or San Francisco
Start each cohort in person with your investor group.
- Reverse Demo Day
Present investment theses and selected deals to investors.
- Private Dinners & Trips
Strengthen relationships across cohorts and geographies.
- Ongoing Alumni Investor Community
Access deal flow, co-invest opportunities, and private events.
Develop
Exponential Career Development
- Career Coaching and Positioning
Prepare for roles in VC, growth equity, PE, and corporate venture.
- Multiple Career Paths
Join a fund, build your own, land the position you always wanted, or invest alongside your existing role.
- Launch Investor Syndicate or Fund
Receive support on structure, LP materials, and setup.
- Global VU Alumni Network
Join a community of 1,000+ venture investors worldwide.
How it all fits
One cohort, all programs,
eleven weeks.
The Investor Accelerator is the spine. The Masterclass, Advanced Modules, Fireside Chats and the fund itself all map to it.
Foundation
Week 1VC Masterclass
40 hours, 100+ topics, 250+ slides. The complete A to Z of venture, taught by VU's General Partners. Case studies, frameworks, group discussion.
Learn more →Ongoing
Weeks 1–11Fireside Chats
Access to 200+ Fireside Chats with leading investors and founders. Learn directly from the operators shaping the market.
Continuing Education
Weeks 3–11Advanced Modules
Twice-weekly deep dives with senior partners on complex, current-market topics. Recorded and live sessions across nine weeks.
Learn more →Live Deal Review
Week 2Startup Madness
A 3.5-day event where partners and cohort members screen 60+ startups together. Watch how senior management engages with founders and pitches the fund.
LEARN BY DOING
Weeks 3–10Investment Apprenticeship
Become a Venture Partner inside VU Venture Partners. Our checkbook in your hands: participate in partner meetings, deal flow, diligence, and live investment decisions with profit-sharing.
Learn more →Graduation
Week 11Private Dinner and Trips
Private dinner in Munich, Kitzbühel ski/hike for Europeans, Napa Valley wine and food tour for Americans. Lifetime cohort bond.
Flexible participation
Built around your life.
Everyone at VU has their own goals, and those are top priority. We support and coach you daily to ensure that you get the most out of the program.
VU can be done remotely or in person in San Francisco, Munich, and Hong Kong.
Our program requires at least 10 to 15 hours per week and can also be done full-time.
We run our sessions on California time (so evenings in Europe). Key times to block in your calendar are 6 to 9 PM CET, Monday to Thursday.
When you can join
Quarterly cohorts. Rolling admissions.
Exclusive to VU cohort members
Profit participation, in short.
Cohort members receive a profit-sharing agreement tied to the performance of the investments their cohort selects. No personal capital is required: investments are made by VU's committed funds and SPVs. Participation is possible, not guaranteed, and depends on actual investment outcomes.
The full detail
Observation and deal-room access. Members observe the full investment process, from sourcing to diligence to committee decisions. Accredited investors or fund managers may, where eligible, follow alongside their cohort's deals through VU's existing syndicate structure, subject to applicable rules and limits.
Sourced capital. Where members introduce investors who participate in VU syndicate SPVs, the program may provide a share of the carried interest generated by that sourced capital, consistent with industry standard introducer arrangements, and subject to geographical restrictions.
Sourced deals. After graduating, members who introduce companies that VU invests in may be eligible for a small carried-interest allocation on those deals, subject to the fund's standard policies and documentation and to geographical restrictions.
Profit sharing is entirely dependent on investment performance and is not guaranteed. Participation is subject to eligibility, visa status, and geographical restrictions. Past performance does not indicate future results.
Ready to talk it through?
A short call with the Venture University admissions team is the easiest way to work out whether a cohort fits your plans. Sign up via Jennifer and you can nominate a person to do one quarter of the course for free.