I studied Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University and broke into venture capital straight out of college—with no prior network or experience in the industry. The guide below is a reflection of everything I’ve learned and observed over the past six years as a VC.

Everyone wants to be a venture capitalist these days. On the surface, it sounds like the dream job: big deals, publicity, fancy off-sites, and investing in the next big thing.

First, The (Unromantic) Truth:

• The salaries aren't as high as people think: Unless you're at a mega fund with billions under management, you're probably not making banker or big tech engineer money. Smaller funds especially tend to be lean on base comp. Here is some salary data
• Carry sounds dreamy, but…: You might never see it. And if you do, it can take 5–10 years to materialize. Most VCs never get meaningful carry—and for junior investors, vesting periods can stretch well beyond 5 years.
• You don’t build technical skills: Especially at early-stage funds, the work can feel surface-level. It’s less about deep modeling or execution, and more about judgment, storytelling, and pattern recognition.

If You Still Want In, There Are Some Pros:

• You get a front-row seat to the future: Talking to founders who are building category-defining companies is genuinely exciting. You’ll often learn more in a month than you would in a year elsewhere.
• You get to invest in what the world could look like: It’s a creative, high-leverage role—if you lean in, it can be incredibly fulfilling.
• There’s social capital: Being a VC can carry weight. Fairly or unfairly, people tend to listen.

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So let’s get into it….

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VCs have two core stakeholders:

• Their LPs (the people who give them money to invest), and
• The founders they back.

Every hire is meant to solve a problem for one (or at times both) of those groups.

✍️ Keep this in mind as you craft your story around why you are valuable to a fund.