Step Into the World of Venture Capital
Launch your venture capital journey at Duke through a structured, hands-on pipeline designed to take you from curious beginner to one with active experience. Through VC Foundations and the Duke Venture Capital Investment Competition (VCIC), students gain direct exposure to venture capital practitioners, build the core skills investors use every day, and apply those skills in a high-stakes competitive environment judged by real VCs. Along the way, students develop relationships with investors, founders, and alumni that can open doors to internships, mentorship, and careers in venture capital and startups.
VC Foundations Workshop
Your entry point into the world of venture capital starts here. VC Foundations is a hands-on, five-part workshop series designed to help Duke students understand how venture capital works, how startups are evaluated, and what it takes to break into the industry.
Led by Duke alumni currently working in venture capital, the series combines practical frameworks, interactive discussions, and real-world insights from practitioners actively investing today. Students will learn how firms source deals, evaluate founders and markets, conduct diligence, and think about investment decisions.
More than an introduction, VC Foundations is designed to prepare students for the next step in Duke’s venture capital pipeline: competing in VCIC. Students who demonstrate commitment, curiosity, and strong analytical thinking will be well-positioned to form teams and continue into the competition experience.
Whether you aspire to work in venture capital, launch a startup, or simply better understand how innovation gets funded, VC Foundations provides a powerful starting point.
No prior experience is required — just curiosity, ambition, and a willingness to learn. Open to all Duke students. Seats are limited, and commitment to attending all five workshops is expected.
Session Dates and Descriptions for Fall 2026 VC Foundations Workshop
Get oriented to the venture capital ecosystem and hear from three practicing investors about how they built their careers in VC. Leave with a clearer view of the paths into the industry and how to begin building yours.
Great venture investing starts with finding exceptional founders before everyone else does. Learn from an Insight Partners investor how leading firms build sourcing engines, develop trusted relationships, and compete to win the best opportunities.
The best VC firms know what they believe and invest accordingly. Learn from Front Porch Ventures how investors assess a fund’s thesis, then develop an investment thesis of your own that connects your interests, experience, and edge to a compelling market opportunity.
Now it’s time to put the investor mindset into practice. Learn how to evaluate a company’s opportunities and risks while building credibility as a thoughtful, value-added partner to founders. Hear directly from the founder of Harmonic Growth Partners and a leader from one of its portfolio companies. With VCIC teams forming in advance, this session is designed to be your first opportunity to practice the diligence skills you will use in the competition.
A deal comes into focus when investors determine what a company is worth and how they will support its next stage of growth. Learn how valuation, capital needs, governance, and key deal terms come together in a term sheet. Then apply those tools as your VCIC team prepares its investment recommendation in our final practice session with an investor from NextEra Energy Investments and the General Council from Founders Fund.
Duke Venture Capital Investment Competition (VCIC)
Step into the role of a venture capitalist in Duke's Venture Capital Investment Competition. Conduct due diligence on real startups, defend investment decisions before practicing VCs, and compete for the opportunity to represent Duke at the Global VCIC.