“Startup investing has traditionally been a black box — this program shines light on the venture capital and angel investing ecosystem.”
— the program's faculty director Angela Lee

With hundreds of equity crowdfunding sites raising 3–4 billion dollars every year and the growing number of multi-billion dollar exits we are seeing in the news, the interest in generating outsized returns from startup investing has been continuously growing over the years.

Over the course of three days, the program provides an invaluable deep dive into both forms of startup financing — venture capital and angel investing — equipping current and aspiring startup investors with a process for evaluating and monitoring potential opportunities and the knowledge they need to lower risk and increase returns.

Participants go through the deal-flow process step by step to understand how to invest in startups. At the end of the program, participants receive an investor field guide they can use in real time to evaluate startups.

Please Contact Us

Please contact our Learning Solutions Specialists at +1 212-854-3395 for a personal conversation to learn more.

IMPACT

Participants gain a profound understanding of:

• Who the players are in early-stage investing and how to source best-in-class deal flow
• How to conduct diligence on a team, a business model, and a product
• The financial and governance terms that matter in a term sheet
• Startup valuation, venture math, and cap table watchouts
• What happens post investment and how to think about your investment portfolio strategy

Upon completion of this program, you will earn three credits towards a Certificate with select alumni and tuition benefits. Learn more.

PROGRAM STRUCTURE

PLEASE NOTE: The upcoming iteration of the program will take place in a live, virtual setting. See the agenda.

The program is taught in a highly experiential manner. Participants learn the frameworks to drive investment decisions and then apply them to case examples. Next, learnings will be applied to real-world startups that are currently fundraising. Participants assess each company as if they were considering investing.

Participants also hear from a number of guest speakers, including leading venture capitalists and other experts in the ecosystem, to gain a varied perspective and ensure they walk out of the program with a strong network of equally curious peers.

For a complete program schedule download the agenda.

PARTICIPANT PROFILE & TESTIMONIALS

The Venture Capital: Investing in Early-Stage Startups program is designed for:

• Aspiring venture capitalists or angel investors who want to understand how investors evaluate startups
• Founders who want to understand how early-stage investors evaluate startups
• Individuals interested in the startup landscape who want to better understand its language and players

Note: This program is not intended for those who want to deep dive into a particular sector or who are interested in later stages of venture investing.

Columbia Business School alumni and up to four of their colleagues are eligible for a 25 percent tuition benefit for this program. More on the Alumni Tuition Benefit.

Hear from Past Participants:

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John Hui

CEO at Twiage

“The Venture Capital program exceeded my original expectation. Professor Angela Lee is a dynamic presenter with a wealth of practical knowledge in venture and angel investing. I wish I had taken this class earlier, so I could have avoided the mistakes that I have made in angel investing. I highly recommend this course to anyone who wants to invest in startup companies or pursue a career in venture capital.”

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Meghan Lenihan Moulder

Principal/VP of Portfolio Mgmt at Tellus BioVentures

“The Venture Capital program at Columbia Business School provided a hands-on and interactive learning experience while being held 100% virtually! The content of the course was extremely relevant and directly applicable to my job. There were two things about this course that really stood out to me as unique: [Faculty Director] Angela Lee and the founder pitches. Angela’s ability to share her industry knowledge and provide advice to the class elevated the course experience. In addition, the founder pitches provided an opportunity to apply the learnings and develop strategies to use moving forward. I would highly recommend this class to anyone new to the VC field as well as anyone interested in either transitioning to it or starting their own investing journey!”

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Tammy Huston

Global Accounts Director, Cleantech at Export Development Canada

"Through the Venture Capital program, I feel that I developed practical skills that I can immediately put to use. It was a well-balanced combination of lecture, group work and guest presentations and I particularly enjoyed the real-life company pitches. [Faculty Director] Angela Lee was a fantastic facilitator, very well organized, and with clear depth of knowledge. I was worried about doing the course by Zoom but in the end, found it to be very practical and engaging. I have been searching for a course that isn’t too basic but also not so focused on the analytical side… this was exactly what I’ve been looking for."

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Rob Zubic

Associate Director, FP&A at Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical

"The Columbia Business School Venture Capital program is an excellent investment of time and money. The program was interactive, current, practical, and relevant. [Faculty Director] Angela Lee was engaging and delivered an outstanding curriculum, making the best of the online learning environment. We were able to conduct due diligence on real startups and had guest speakers who were from top-notch VC firms. Kudos as well to the program manager for his behind-the-scenes admin and tech work to ensure a smooth and seamless program delivery."

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Craig Ford

Owner of SeaBreeze

“I had a tremendous learning experience participating in Columbia’s Venture Capital program. I have found all the Columbia offerings to be outstanding, and Venture Capital is no different. It gives folks a great insight to this asset class that has gained much traction. The class structure addresses an exhaustive list of topics, including deal structures and valuations. The relevant examples offered added tremendous value as many ACTUAL startups/founders/key players were interviewed and discussed among the groups. Additionally, Professor Lee is really outstanding. Her passion for the topic is very apparent and she is very conscious ensuring that all attendee’s questions and requests were answered. If you have any interest in Venture Capital, this program will give you a running start.”

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Lavinia Martins

CEO at FLUXO Planejamento Financeiro

“The Venture Capital program at Columbia Business School covers all the information needed for entrepreneurs and investors about the VC world: from how to evaluate startups and how to choose cofounders and mentors to how to make a diligence and how to evaluate and dilute shares. Angela Lee is an amazing professor, and I loved the way she has built the program mixing content with maths, work groups, entrepreneur speech and evaluation, and professional VC speakers! It's really an awesome program. I recommend it for anyone interested in the Venture Capital subject!”

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Frederik Bossens

Self-Employed

“As a value investor, at first sight venture capital wouldn't be my primary choice of a course. At first, I took it to gain ideas about mixing value with venture capital. That didn't seem possible. But it turns out I learned a lot about attracting venture capital for starting a value investing firm. In particular: how to attract funds for your firm. The point is, in all Columbia courses you take, you learn something that is applicable to your own situation in the real world. You learn how to make your business thrive.”

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John Hui

CEO at Twiage

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Meghan Lenihan Moulder

Principal/VP of Portfolio Mgmt at Tellus BioVentures

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Tammy Huston

Global Accounts Director, Cleantech at Export Development Canada

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Rob Zubic

Associate Director, FP&A at Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical

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Craig Ford

Owner of SeaBreeze

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Lavinia Martins

CEO at FLUXO Planejamento Financeiro

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Frederik Bossens

Self-Employed

FACULTY

Angela Lee, Faculty Director
Professor of Professional Practice, Finance
Chief Innovation Officer and Faculty Director of the Lang Center for Entrepreneurship

Angela Lee is a professor of Professional Practice and the Chief Innovation Officer at Columbia Business School. She teaches venture capital (Foundations of VC, VC Seminar) and leadership (The Leader’s Voice) courses. She brings 20 years of innovation, strategy, and entrepreneurship experience to the classroom. She started her career in product management and then moved into strategy consulting at McKinsey.

Lee is passionate about entrepreneurship and has started several companies in the education sector. She herself is a startup investor and the founder of 37 Angels, an investing network that evaluates and invests in startups.

Lee has spoken at the White House and NASA and is a sought-after expert on CNBC, Bloomberg TV, MSNBC, and Fox Business. She was recognized by Crain’s as a Notable Women in Tech in 2019, by Inc. as one of 17 Inspiring Women to Watch in 2017, and by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of 6 Innovative Women to Watch in 2015.

Along with Professor Lee, additional Columbia Business School faculty contribute to and teach in the program.

FAQ

 
Do you have questions about our live online programs? Please review our commonly asked questions on our live online programs FAQs page.