ISA Ventures Scout & Fellowship Programs

Building the next generation of Iowa's venture ecosystem

The venture capital industry in Iowa is a small one, with just a handful of funds and probably less than 100 consistently active angel investors. 

We’re aiming to change that. 

Additionally, In Iowa, the number of underrepresented founders who have raised over $1M can be counted on one hand. This is a problem that we also want to address. One way to get started is by bringing more diverse representation to the VC side of the table.

Announcing the ISA Ventures 2022 Scout & Fellowship Programs

To make a dent in this, we’re launching 3 year-long Scout and Fellowship programs in 2022. These programs will give up to 8 highly qualified college students a unique opportunity to learn more about Venture Capital, sitting on this side of the table. They’ll be part of the entire venture process, and gain practical experience. This will prepare them to become a VC one day, or to start a company, or maybe to work with ISA Ventures right here in Iowa upon graduation. 

The programs are each 12 months long and we have three tracks to choose from:

• Venture Scouts are focused on identifying and evaluating potential investment opportunities on and around college campuses in Iowa and surrounding states. 

• Venture Fellows work intensively with our staff on selected deals, performing due diligence, modelling, and analysis of potential investments.  

• Venture Legal Fellows will work with our team on legal matters such as securities work, due diligence and compliance.

Applications for the Scout and Fellowship programs are open to college students in Iowa, with a specific focus on diverse candidates. 

Venture Scouts

Focus area: Identifying and evaluating potential investment opportunities on and around college campuses in Iowa and surrounding states. This is a networking role, with significant outreach and relationship-building activities. 

The role is ideal for: Rising sophomores, juniors, seniors, or graduate students at Iowa Colleges and Universities with innovation and entrepreneurial programs. Prefer students with work experience. You must be a student in good standing at an Iowa college or university.

Things we’re looking for in Venture Scout candidates: Strong written and verbal communication skills - you’re coalescing extremely complex information about a business opportunity into two concise pages for easy evaluation. ​Successful candidates will be self-disciplined, self-starters, good time managers, active communicators, critical thinkers, able to meet deadlines and motivated to follow through without supervision. You’re a networker and enjoy reaching out to people and getting to know them, but also analytical, able to discern key information, organize it, and communicate it.

Number of available positions: up to 5

Your mentor during the program: Mikayla Sullivan, Senior Associate

Program content: 

• January-May (10 hrs/week): learn about venture investment, and begin scouting for deals on or near campus, building skill sets, and creating relationships. Includes 2-day training in Cedar Rapids on January 13-14th (lodging will be provided if needed).

• Summer (40 hrs/week): You’ll work full-time with our team in Cedar Rapids, remotely or in-person. In addition, we believe that having experience working directly in startups is critical to being a good investor. Our program will help you get that experience, for example, as an intern with one or more portfolio startups to directly experience the founder side of the table and gain a deeper perspective with our own portfolio companies. Or, we may organize a week-long immersion with a portfolio startup, wherein the student “shadows” the CEO and leadership team through a board meeting, attends team meetings, and rotates through departments and teams.

• September-December (10 hrs/week): Put everything into practice, continuing to scout, and perhaps leading a deal from initial call to investment offer, working with Mikayla to ensure they’re quality deals and meet our standards. 

Location: Remote, with some in-person time at our office in Cedar Rapids, especially during the Summer.  

Compensation: We expect to work with your colleges to fund these positions and/or provide school credit.

Application Process: Apply by November 30th here, including one letter of reference from a relevant professor or program administrator at your college or university. Remote Interview for initial candidates in November and December. We’ll hold in-person interviews for finalists, COVID-permitting, in December, and announce the ISAV 2022 Scouts/Fellows by the end of the year. The program begins January 2022.

Venture Fellows

Focus area: Working intensively with our staff on selected deals, performing due diligence and analysis of potential investments. This is a deep thinking, analytical role. You’ll be doing market research, financial modeling, and deal economics evaluation.

The role is ideal for: Juniors, seniors, or graduate students at Iowa Colleges and Universities with innovation and entrepreneurial programs. Prefer students with work experience. You must be a student in good standing at an Iowa college or university.

Things we’re looking for in Venture Fellow candidates: Focused on fewer, thorough evaluations of opportunities, market research, financial modeling, deal economics evaluation. You like to think deeply, see connections between trends and ideas. You love to write persuasively, backed up by data. You love math, spreadsheets, and numbers, and building models to reflect real-world scenarios as closely as possible. You enjoy thinking about how the world will change over time, and predicting how that might come to pass.

Number of available positions: 2

Your mentor during the program: Brittany Brown, Senior Analyst

Program Content and Duration: 

• January-May (10 hrs/week): learn about venture investment, financial modeling, and due-diligence. Includes 2-day training in Cedar Rapids on January 13-14th (lodging will be provided if needed).

• Summer (40 hrs/week): You’ll work full-time with our team in Cedar Rapids, remotely or in-person. In addition, we believe that having experience working directly in startups is critical to being a good investor. Our program will help you get that experience, for example, as an intern with one or more portfolio startups to directly experience the founder side of the table and gain a deeper perspective with our own portfolio companies. Or, we may organize a week-long immersion with a portfolio startup, wherein the student “shadows” the CEO and leadership team through a board meeting, attends team meetings, and rotates through departments and teams.

• September-December (10 hrs/week): Work closely with our team to continue to evaluate deals, write deal memos, research different markets, etc. Fellows may be invited to Investment Committee meetings. 

Location: Remote, with some in-person time at our office in Cedar Rapids, especially during the Summer.  

Compensation: We expect to work with your colleges to fund these positions and/or provide school credit.

Application Process: Apply by November 30th here, including one letter of reference from a relevant professor or program administrator at your college or university. Remote Interview for initial candidates in November and December. We’ll hold in-person interviews for finalists, COVID-permitting, in December, and announce the ISAV 2022 Scouts/Fellows by the end of the year. The program begins January 2022.

Venture Legal Fellow

Focus area: Working intensively with our General Counsel and staff on selected deals, focusing on compliance with laws and regulations related to economic development, investments, and securities. This includes due diligence work, analysis of potential investments, and developing and using best practices for venture capital. This is an analytical role from the legal perspective in the venture capital business. You’ll be analyzing deal terms and funding structures, working with our analysts and financial data, and looking at ways to get things done with a thorough understanding of securities rules and regulations.

The role is directed to: students who have completed or are taking business organizations and securities law courses. This position may be particularly interesting to joint JD/MBA students.  Prefer students with prior work experience. You must be a law student in good standing.

Things we’re looking for in Venture Legal Fellow candidates: You’re into business law, finance, and securities. You’re organized, methodical, and creative. You think you’d enjoy working with high-risk businesses and founders, many of whom are first-timers learning the ropes - patience and communication skills are crucial. You enjoy math, spreadsheets and numbers, and connecting financial models to agreed-upon contracts and legal documents. 

Number of available positions: 1

Your mentor during the program: Frank Camp, General Counsel

Program Content and Duration: 

• January-May (10 hrs/week): learn about venture investment, financial modeling, and due diligence. Includes 2-day training in Cedar Rapids on January 13-14th (lodging will be provided if needed).

• Summer (40 hrs/week): You’ll work full-time with our team in Cedar Rapids, remotely or in-person. In addition, we believe that having experience working directly in startups is critical to being a good investor. Our program will help you get that experience, for example, as an intern with one or more portfolio startups to directly experience the founder side of the table and gain a deeper perspective with our own portfolio companies. Or, we may organize a week-long immersion with a portfolio startup, wherein the student “shadows” the CEO and leadership team through a board meeting, attends team meetings, and rotates through departments and teams.

• September-December (10 hrs/week): Work closely with our team to continue to evaluate deals, write deal memos, perform due diligence, etc. Fellows may be invited to Investment Committee meetings. 

Location: Remote, with some in-person time at our office in Cedar Rapids, especially during the Summer.  

Compensation: We expect to work with your colleges to fund these positions and/or provide school credit.

Application Process: Apply by November 30th here, including one letter of reference from a relevant professor or program administrator at your college or university. Remote Interview for initial candidates in November and December. We’ll hold in-person interviews for finalists, COVID-permitting, in December, and announce the ISAV 2022 Scouts/Fellows by the end of the year. The program begins January 2022.