An Elite College Degree: A Prerequisite for Startup Funding Success
If You Haven’t Attended One of These Universities, Forget About Raising Money from Venture Capitalists
The other day Crunchbse ran an article detailing where startup company founders who had raised more than $1 million went to school. Then, almost at the same time, Pitchbook ran a similar article on the top U.S. business schools for funded founders.Here’s the two charts:
The Pitchbook article went on to say, almost in a “throw-away” comment casual way (presumably intended to mollify the non-Ivy League prospective customers who may be out there and who would be discouraged from buying services from Pitchbook if they thought there was no chance they could ever qualify for venture capital financing) that the reader shouldn’t worry “[i]f your school [isn’t] on the list” since “ … more than 16,000 people founded or co-founded companies that raised $1 million or more” and “[t]he universities listed …. represent only a tiny percentage of that group.”
However, given this throw-away comment, one is then driven to ask “if that is so, then why even print the article in the first place?” Clearly, the reason for the article was to share with the audience where successful founders of startup companies attended school. The natural conclusion that someone draws from such a disclosure is “if I want to succeed with a startup that needs venture capital in order to succeed, I need to attend one of the listed universities or business schools.” Logical, but, clearly, very upsetting for those who have not been so blessed.
Fortunately, however, there are now other ways to be successful and to raise the early seed money you need to qualify for subsequent financing, irrespective of where you went to school.
One such way is a new investment concept known as Archimedes’ Offspring. Archimedes’ Offspring (or AOS), through one or more “invention family” investment funds, arranges for direct investments by investors in inventions (and related intellectual property) and not in startups (or the securities issued by those startups).
So, if you weren’t one of those privileged individuals who, by hook or by crook, gained admission to one of the elite schools on the lists, take heart, there’s still money out there for you, just not from those sources that the national media has fallen in love with, i.e., venture capitalists.
Ray Burrasca is the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Archimedes’ Offspring, an unincorporated “umbrella” organization whose mission is to make “reasonable returns investing” affordable for the ordinary Joe’s and Jane’s and, in the process, to reinvent innovation in the America.He can be reached at ray@archimedesoffspring.com or by phone at (303) 910-2344.
