● Educate students in venture-capital fundamentals: sourcing, due diligence, market

sizing, valuation, and term-sheet basics.

● Operate as a VC Studio: each year we recruit a team of analysts, select 2-4 UK

start-ups that meet our GritTech criteria (see below), produce a professional investor

memo, and help founders sharpen their fundraising story.

● “GritTech”

○ Capital efficiency – strong user or revenue growth on low cash burn.

○ Real Market Gaps - filling a real market gap, typically ignored by larger

competitors.

○ Ingenuity – creative, low-cost hacks to reach first customers or build MVPs.

○ Real-world validation – paying users, signed pilots, or LOIs—not just a pitch

deck.

○ Founder resilience – clear evidence of persistence through constraints.

● Develop employability skills (financial modelling, strategic analysis, presentation). As

well as mentoring analysts in alumni outreach, resume formatting etc.

● Connect Exeter to the wider venture ecosystem through guest talks and warm intros

to VC firms, angels, and alumni investors.

● Foster interdisciplinary collaboration across Business, Economics, STEM, and

Humanities.