Organization:Dorm Room Fund
Contents
Overview
Dorm Room Fund (DRF) is a student-run venture firm that invests in student-run companies. Launched in September 2012 and backed by First Round Capital, they provide average investments of $15,000 - $20,000 for student run start-ups. The DRF's overall mission is to inspire and support more careers in the startup industry. Apart from funding, DRF also offers their members discounts and partnerships with premier service providers, public relations, mentorship, DRF events, and access to a national network of amazing student entrepreneurs. The Dorm Room Fund currently has student groups based out of New York City, the San Francisco Bay Area, Philadelphia, and Boston.
Purpose
The main purpose of Dorm Room Fund is to help student founders take their ideas from their dorm room to the market while providing their members with an entrepreneurial education. The main ways of achieving this goal are through investments, access to their huge support network, and vast recourses. All of the DRF investors are students, making it an organization for students led by students.
Distinct Differences From Other Offerings
How It Is Run
Which start-up ventures the Dorm Room Fund invests in is entirely decided upon by the student investors, meaning the investors can truly relate to what other students are trying to accomplish and the problems a student start-up may encounter. By using this approach to start up investment, it gives the DRF a very unique perspective compared to traditional investment teams.
Financing
DRF invests on a founder-friendly uncapped convertible note. This means that the student investment group loans money to a startup, but instead of receiving the invested money back after a certain time period, the note converts into stock. However, if the startup is successful without raising additional capital or pursuing equity financing, the note may not convert and the startup can choose to simply repay the note plus a very nominal (around 2%) interest rate. The Dorm Room Fund operates as transparently as possible so that every aspect of their terms and conditions are clearly understood. Knowing the risk in investing in student start-ups, the DRF fully understands that a failed company is not the same as a failed entrepreneur. As long as all persons involved learned from the failure, the student investment group views the money invested in the student start-up as tuition paid toward an entrepreneurial education. The Dorm Room Fund takes a loss and the founders DO NOT need to repay the money under any circumstances.
The Support System
The most incredible thing about this program by far is the knowledge and experience that the RA (DRF Advisors) support system gives to the student entrepreneurs. The 60 RA's have a combined 450 years of entrepreneurial experience and together have produced $2.7 Billion in exit revenue. This network gives students accepted into the program a huge advantage from the advice and recourses they receive.
Impact Achieved For Students and Campus
Even though the program is fairly young (celebrating its first year, 2013), DRF has already funded 24 companies. The successful ones can all be viewed at DRFs portfolio page or in the gallery below. The portfolio CEO's come from a variety of schools which include Upenn, Columbia, Stanford, UC Berkeley, NYU, Dartmouth, MIT, and Princeton; like the universities listed, the companies funded are in extremely different fields.
Steps Required To Bring Resource to Campus
The Dorm Room Fund mainly operates in the 5 cities listed above, but state on the website that the student investment group does not completely rule out investing in companies outside of those particular 5 cities. If you do live in New York City, San Francisco Bay Area, Philadelphia, and Boston follow these links to learn more about the specific network in your city. To get them associated with your campus, simply get a start up from your school to fill out the application form. Since the Dorm Room Fund is in its infancy (1 year old!) and has already spread to five major cities, the possibilities to spread to additional locations, especially if there is already an established entrepreneurial environment, are open.
Contact Information
If interested, the best way to contact the Dorm Room Fund is through their website, dormroomfund.com. On the website you will find a contact form and a tab to submit a business idea to be accepted into their program. You can also connect with the student investment group on Facebook and Twitter.
