Become a Fellow

Many of the successful VCs that I know never see themselves as financiers but rather as contributing nodes to the ecosystem. They empathize, they hustle and they give back - not too dissimilar to the greatest founders we know today.

However, unlike starting a typical technology business, there was never a clear path for someone to learn about the venture capital industry. After finishing my startup endeavor, I accidentally bumped into the path of venture investing by simply hanging out with other founders. I loved it the first day - and still do.

But when I first got into the field of venture investing, it was a steep learning curve to understand the various parts of the business, the economics of portfolio construction, and most importantly the exercise of building and defending an investment thesis. Fortunately, I have met many great founders and VCs who have generously mentored me along the way and helped me grow. And for that, I’m forever grateful.

This week, I’m happy to announce that we are launching the Leonis Fellowship program. We believe having more professionally trained VCs will only enhance the cause of adding value to the startup ecosystem and the founders who we serve.

It's our way to pay it forward. Come join us!

You can find out more info here and please forward it to someone who might benefit from the program - https://www.leoniscap.com/blog/leonis-fellowship

Cheers,

Jay

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What is Leonis Fellowship?

Leonis Fellows program is a VC apprenticeship with a thematic-driven venture fund on the AI automation economy. Fellows will have opportunities to learn from and interact directly with the partners and the broader investment team. We will teach you the foundation of venture capital, industry research (startup landscape mapping), and deal sourcing.

The program is roughly 3-month long with 10 - 15 hours needed per week. You will also have the opportunity to collaborate with the fund on investments even after you graduate, being part of the permanent Leonis Fellows family.

What can you expect?

Through the program, we hope that the fellows will have a hands-on learning experience in that they can form an investment thesis based on the industry research, build and defend investment cases as they meet with founders as Leonis Fellows. The program also offers the Fellows a unique platform where they can build their personal brand in the venture ecosystem by actively co-sponsoring deals with the investment team.

Specifically, here are what you can expect:

• Module 1: We will teach you the basics of venture capital

• Module 2: Hands-on thesis formation & vertical research in peer group

• Module 3: Practical deal sourcing and value-adding like a VC

The program is free. We are accepting applications now with the intended start date Mid-June 2021.

To ensure the quality of the program and our engagement with the fellows, we aim to only take in 8-10 candidates this time.

Why do we offer Leonis Fellowship?

This is our way of giving back. We believe having more professionally trained VCs will only enhance the cause of adding value to the startup ecosystem and the founders who we serve.

Who should apply?

We are looking for candidates who are hungry to learn about venture capital and to help startup founders. The most successful candidate tend to have the intellectual curiosity to learn, the relentless drive to take initiatives, and genuine empathy for founders.

You can be a student, or a young professional and you can be either in the US or in China - we look for a diverse set of experiences and perspectives. A technical degree is not required, although it's a bonus.

How to apply?

You can submit this simple application form here - https://form.jotform.com/211258836026152

We have put in a few questions in the form - they are not required but the more attention you give to the application, the higher priority consideration we will reciprocate. After you submit the form, our team will get back in touch with you to schedule a 30 min video chat and we will announce the fellows in early June.

About Leonis Capital

Leonis is a thematic-driven venture capital fund that’s focused on the “automation economy” companies. We have a strong bias for technical founders, the under-estimated, and often times immigrant founders.

https://www.leoniscap.com/blog/leonis-fellowship