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From degrees to dollars: Exploring the link between elite education and startup funding

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  • Alfredo Molinas

    (Yale University, New Haven, USA)

Abstract

Many startups look for venture capital (VC) funding to grow their business. Anecdotally, in the Southeast Asia context, startup founders who attended an elite institute of higher learning have greater access to this kind of capital, but this has not been demonstrated quantitatively. We look at a dataset of nearly 800 startups in Southeast Asia who have received VC funding in the last 5 years and look for any correlation between the founder's educational background and the amount of VC funding received. We find that founders who have obtained a postgraduate degree from an elite university receive significantly more VC funding than those who graduated from other universities. Furthermore, this effect is only seen at later stages of funding, not at the seed stage. Potential reasons for this effect could be from stronger signaling of business acumen or technical skill; or better access to funding networks.

Suggested Citation

  • Alfredo Molinas, 2024. "From degrees to dollars: Exploring the link between elite education and startup funding," Journal of Economic Analysis, Anser Press, vol. 3(1), pages 145-159, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bba:j00001:v:3:y:2024:i:1:p:145-159:d:171
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Matthew R. Marvel & G.T. Lumpkin, 2007. "Technology Entrepreneurs’ Human Capital and Its Effects on Innovation Radicalness," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 31(6), pages 807-828, November.
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