Textbook Ventures is Going To YOUR Uni This Year!
If 2017 was big, then 2018 is going to be HUGE!
So what does Textbook Ventures do again?
Before we get to the good news… let’s give everyone a recap on Textbook Ventures was originally a student-fund VC fund, replicating the successful entrepreneurship scene in America, with the likes of other student funds like Rough Draft Ventures. 2017 was a year to test the idea for the first time. Like every good experiment, we managed to gather enough data to realise that it may not be time for something like that just yet. In 2017, we are taking a step back to create the largest network of student founders in Australia, to support them every step of the way.
At our very core, Textbook Ventures is an organisation that is student founder focused. We understand how difficult it is juggle university, an actual paying job and pursuing your dreams in entrepreneurship. That’s why, we want to catered services that meets student founders’ needs like mentorship programs, events, workshops, access to funding and networks to give more opportunities to those who took the leap.
2017 was a huge year for us. It was our first proper year operating, and we were overwhelmed by all of the positive feedback we have gotten. All in all, I’d like to call it a success (but of course, I am biased):
- 15 student-founded startups completed our pre-accelerator program at UNSW
- 9 of those received funding or accepted into accelerator programs (while still being students!)
- 600+ community and students came to our events, the biggest being our Women in VC panel
Thank you to all of the mentors, advisors, student founders, team members and community members who have helped us make this happen. But of course, we also had a lot of learnings. Some things worked really well, and others didn’t, so it was time for a change.
2018: Expansion Into Other Universities
If any of you have been following us in 2017, you are probably a student from the University of New South Wales. However, the few of you that actually come all the way from other universities to attend our events and workshops, we are excited to announce that Textbook Ventures is expanding to other universities in New South Wales! While we are mostly focusing on the big universities like University of Sydney, Macquarie University and UTS, we are not going to discriminate on what university you are from — honestly, anyone is welcome at our events.
Why the Change?
Being at UNSW meant that we were able to really understand the ecosystem and the campus culture, to effectively hold events that we know UNSW students will love! Now, we want to start creating events across different universities, to boost the student entrepreneurship ecosystem at scale. But more importantly, we believe that:
Cross-uni collaboration enables diversity of ideas and people.
Ideas being knowledge transfer and people, being able to access likeminded talent with diverse skillsets. We knew that this wouldn’t flourish if we were to lock ourselves to one university.
So, What’s Happening in 2018?
Last year, we saw huge successes through our events, particularly our pitch nights and “major” events like Women in VC and Social Entrepreneurship panels. We’ve brought on Australia’s best VCs like Blackbird Ventures, Airtree Ventures, leading space startup entrepreneurs such as the founders of Fleet and Saber Astronautics, blockchain experts, leading social entrepreneurs to the UNSW campus. In 2018, we’ll have the same great events and the same great speakers to all students, in more accessible locations.
Further to this, we’ll be introducing new initiatives like a:
- Mentorship program for selected student founders
- Be part of the student startup network — register your startup to get VCs’ eyes on them
- A revised and bigger version of our accelerator program — a cross-university end-of-year student startup demo night
Be Part of The Change
We’re recruiting passionate students to be part of this change! There’s really no prerequisite, but a love for startups and entrepreneurship is highly encouraged.
We’re looking for:
- Innovation Ambassadors — students who are keen to spread the Textbook Ventures brand at their own universities.
- Accounts Manager — a financially savvy student who is ready to keep us on track.
- Events Manager — a student who loves to create awesome events for other likeminded students.
- Engagement Manager — a digitally savvy student who has a keen eye for data, marketing and also a bit of creativity to “engage” students from all universities.
- Some that aren’t listed… are Events Officers and Content Creators.
Apply through here or send me a message at jenny@textbook.ventures. I look forward to hearing from you!
