Introducing Moonlight
Because starting on both sides of the table is hard
Welcome to a special edition of Black Box. I’m excited to introduce Moonlight, a list of part-time, remote-first, and (equity-)free programs for aspiring VCs and new founders. I hope it helps especially underrepresented folks start on both sides of the table.
Though VCs seem like elites who would have “made it” regardless of career, most of the junior investors that I know struggled quite a bit to get to where they are now. I have previously written about my own six-year journey into venture. What I left out of that post was the overwhelming loss of direction and loneliness I felt while trying to break in. For the uninitiated, recruiting for VC is unlike recruiting for any other industry. The majority of positions are not publicly posted, interview opportunities are heavily network-based, and processes can be extremely long and opaque. And the nature of the job means candidates must have extensive knowledge of niche topics as well as very well-developed perspectives on various technologies. This not a job in which cramming case interviews or LBO models is sufficient.
If, like me, you went to a non-target school (read: not Stanford or Harvard), you probably have no idea where to start. I doubly didn’t as an East Coaster and first-generation immigrant. My best source of advice was interviews; at one point, I was applying to roles just to network. During one of these, the interviewer told me I needed to “do the job before doing the job”. I know he meant well, but this was the most frustrating tip I had gotten. If I knew how to be an investor and was friends with the right people, I wouldn’t be in this position in the first place! Hustling is fine and good, but you need to hustle in the right direction for it to pay off. I had no direction and no one to ask.
About a year into consulting, I saw a LinkedIn connection announce that they were joining a fellowship at Alumni Ventures. I had never heard of such a thing, but as I learned more about the program, I realized this is what that interviewer meant. I immediately applied and joined the next cohort — the first of several fellowships and scouting programs I did over the next few years. Through them, I was exposed to the kind of work VCs actually do and developed a network of like-minded peers. And while not every interview asked me about them, I think these programs were critical in helping me eventually land at DCM Ventures.
Along the way, I began collecting these programs. Part of why was simply curiosity: I was surprised by how many VCs had fellows and scouts once I started looking. That completionist mindset was one of the reasons that I started the list. But I was more motivated by how many people reached out about my experience with these programs. A lot of them were less familiar with VC than me due to their backgrounds, despite the fact that many were at least as accomplished and hungry as I was. If I had a list of programs, I could give them something more tactically useful.
I see the same “cold start” problem on the other side of the table. Many of the founders I talk to are Gen Zs or young millennials who suddenly face all the ups and downs of entrepreneurship. (Any investor should openly admit that building a company makes breaking into VC look easy and structured.) To my delight, I found analogous programs for founders. I began collecting these as well and hope that, with your help, the founder program directory will be as comprehensive as the VC one.
Alright, enough introduction. Here are the link and socials for Moonlight:
Finally, a note on inclusion criteria. I know there are more programs called fellowships or scouting programs than these. But because I hope Moonlight helps diverse investors and founders especially, I have restricted listings to programs with lowest barrier of entry. This generally means programs that are part-time, remote-first, and (equity-)free with a public application. (Of course, this doesn’t mean Moonlight is complete; if you know of a program that fits this criteria, please email me at wngjj.61[at]gmail[dot]com.) To that end, I have also marked programs explicitly focused on diversity.
I hope Moonlight makes starting a bit easier. May your moonlight become your sunshine. ☀️
Have you done any of these programs or does your firm host one? Tell me about it @jwang_18 or reach out on LinkedIn. Back to regularly scheduled programming next week!