The Harlem Capital Syllabus: A Primer on Venture Capital

by

By Tonna Obaze and Summer ’22 interns

Looking to learn more about venture capital? Let the Harlem Capital VC Syllabus be your guide. 

The Harlem Capital Syllabus is a one-stop shop to get up to speed on venture, fundraising, and building startups. Since Harlem Capital’s inception, the syllabus has been the cornerstone of our Internship program. As we work toward our mission to change the face of entrepreneurship and create more diverse investors, we’ve decided to release the HCP Syllabus to the community. 

The Harlem Capital Syllabus: An Overview 

Working through the Harlem Capital Syllabus provides a deep understanding of the venture capital industry and the diverse investing landscape — from the mechanics of due diligence and building a fund to the business strategy behind growing startups. 

The HCP Syllabus covers: 

  • Sourcing & Due Diligence 
  • Product Market Fit 
  • KPIs and Unit Economics
  • Market Sizing 
  • Valuation
  • Term Sheets & Financial 
  • VC Exits
  • Fund Operations
  • The Rise of VC Platform 

The Syllabus you see today is a curated list of venture capital resources to guide anyone interested in learning more about VC. With each class, we’ve combed the industry for the latest & greatest venture insights and data — and listened to feedback from our interns on what’s been most helpful. The Harlem Capital Syllabus is a product of community collaboration and constant iteration. Since the Syllabus was launched with our very first intern class, it’s taken many forms. 

Click here to view and download the full report.

HCP-External-VC-Syllabus-October-2022-vFF

Expanding the Diverse Talent Pool 

We hope that the Harlem Capital Syllabus will foster educational access and learning for the diverse community. We’ve curated the most impactful venture insights into a digestible format to allow our ecosystem to learn with us. 

So often, our team hears from aspiring venture capitalists who are just getting started in the industry. Our most frequent ask is — what VC resources do you recommend to get started? 

Well, if you’re looking to go 0-100 on all things venture or preparing to recruit for a VC role, the Harlem Capital Syllabus is here to help you! 

Whether you are…

  • An aspiring VC looking to learn more as you start your recruiting journey 
  • A junior investor looking to sharpen your skills in sourcing, diligence, and portfolio management 
  • A seasoned investor looking for industry resources and benchmarking metrics for your portfolio companies 

…there’s something in the Harlem Capital Syllabus for you! 

The Harlem Capital Internship 

One of our goals at Harlem Capital is to provide access and transparency into the venture capital industry and increase the number of diverse investors at funds. 

Since launching our intern program in 2018, we have had 88 interns over 15 classes. We are thrilled to have 31 HCP interns go on to roles in VC and PE, most recently joining top funds such as Lerer Hippeau and Female Founders Fund. 

If you’d like to work through the HCP Syllabus with the team, learn more about our internship program here.

Recent Blogs

1,257 Black and Latino Startups Have Raised $1M+ in VC Funding

Read More

The Power of Propense: The Future of Cross-Selling

Read More

Unicorns of Unicorns: A look at the 38 Black and Latino Founded Unicorns

Read More