With its vibrant technology and startup scene, Boston has become a hotspot for startup investment jobs. Landing a role can be competitive, but opportunities abound for those willing to work hard and strategically position themselves. This article will provide an overview of the investment landscape in Boston and actionable tips for securing a startup investment role. From networking events to polishing your resume, we’ll cover all the bases required to break into the exciting world of startup investing in Beantown. With a booming ecosystem and major firms like Battery Ventures, Atlas Ventures, and Spark Capital, Boston offers a range of investment roles from analysts to associates and vice presidents. By highlighting your interest in startups and emerging technologies, tailoring your resume, and tapping into your connections, you can land your dream job backing the next generation of startups in Boston.
Network extensively at Boston’s startup events
Boston has a thriving startup and tech event scene. Attend relevant meetups, conferences, pitch competitions, and social events to connect with investors and demonstrate your interest. Great events to regularly attend include Boston Tech Jam, MassChallenge demo days, Venture Cafe Thursdays, the Harvard Innovation Lab speaker series, and local angel group meetings like Boston Millennium Partners. Don’t just collect business cards – follow up with new connections via email and LinkedIn. Offer to grab coffee to continue the conversation and seek informational interviews. Share articles, podcasts or events that may interest them. Building genuine relationships takes time but can pay dividends in future job prospects.
Craft a compelling, investment-focused resume
Your resume needs to highlight experiences, skills and interests relevant to startup investing. Include internships, work experience, extracurriculars and coursework related to areas like venture capital, private equity, financial analysis, portfolio management, entrepreneurship and emerging technologies. Tailor your resume summary to the specific role. Showcase Excel modeling skills, valuation knowledge and interest in analyzing startup business models. List relevant competition wins such as business proposal contests and investment portfolio challenges. Highlight leadership positions in investment-focused student clubs. Quantify achievements with metrics like portfolio returns, funding raised and valuation multiples. Choose an investment-centric resume template to align the overall presentation.
Leverage campus resources and alumni networks
Top schools in Boston like MIT, Harvard and Babson have courses, clubs and alumni networks focused on venture capital and startup investing. Utilize campus resources by taking relevant classes, leading student investment organizations and tapping into alumni in the field. Many alumni actively support student career development through mentorship programs, job shadowing and recruiting for their firms. Identify target firms’ key schools for recruitment and get involved on those campuses. You can even directly reach out to alumni in junior investment roles via LinkedIn for informational interviews and advice.
Apply to investment-focused internship programs
Boston’s vibrant investment landscape provides many formal internship programs. Top startup investors like Battery Ventures, Spark Capital and Accomplice run highly competitive summer internships. Larger finance firms like Fidelity, Putnam Investments and Wellington recruit interns interested in transitioning into their venture capital divisions. Smaller, early stage firms tend to hire interns directly based on fit. Look for openings on firms’ careers pages, job boards, LinkedIn and university recruiting events. When applying, highlight your alignment with the firm’s domain focus and startup ethos.
With a strategic approach focused on networking, polishing your resume, leveraging campus resources and applying to program, you can break into Boston’s startup investment scene. Tailor your efforts to the specific firms and roles that excite you. With an increasing number of startups, accelerators and funds, Boston will continue to offer promising career paths in the startup investment space.