Dorm Room Fund

What Dorm Room Fund does

Dorm Room Fund is a US-based student-focused venture capital firm founded in 2012 by Josh Kopelman of First Round Capital and headquartered in Philadelphia. The firm provides early-stage capital ($90K–$250K checks at approximately 1.3% target ownership) to founders enrolled in or recently graduated from college, business school, PhD programs, and similar institutions. Its sourcing model is built around four regional student investment partner teams covering Boston & Northeast, SF & West Coast, Philly & Southeast, and NYC & Midwest, backed by a full-time HQ team ("DRF Co.").

The firm operates a curated multi-stage evaluation funnel: an Airtable-based application, a first call with an investment partner, deeper diligence, and a final regional-team pitch. Beyond capital, portfolio companies receive introductions to top-tier VCs, mentorship from operators and unicorn founders, and access to a 250+ alumni community that includes partners at a16z (Alex Immerman), Bessemer (Talia Goldberg), Carta, and other leading firms. Sub-programs such as Blueprint Project, Women's Founder Track, Prism Investor Track, PHD Track, and Frontier Track extend the sourcing funnel into underrepresented founder populations.

DRF generates returns through equity appreciation, follow-on funding rounds, acquisitions, and IPOs of its 300+ portfolio companies, which have collectively raised $6B+ in follow-on capital. The fund operates as a private entity with no public financials; investment is restricted to US-incorporated companies. The 2021 launch of an independent fund (backed by Marc Andreessen, Chris Dixon, Garry Tan, Bill Trenchard, Insight, Plexo Capital, Quiet Capital, Underscore VC, and others) marked its structural separation from First Round Capital, while preserving First Round as a continuing backer.

Name

Dorm Room Fund

Legal name

Dorm Room Fund

Website

https://dormroomfund.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Dorm Room Fund is a Philadelphia-based venture capital firm founded in 2012 that invests $90K–$250K into US student founders via four regional student partner teams, providing first-check capital, mentor access, and introductions to a 250+ alumni network spanning tier-1 venture firms.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Cambridge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Portfolio Returns / Equity Appreciation: Dorm Room Fund invests equity in early-stage student-founded companies and generates returns through portfolio appreciation, follow-on funding rounds, acquisitions, and IPOs. They target approximately 1.3% equity ownership per investment with check sizes ranging from $90K-$250K.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Dorm Room Fund is a venture capital firm that invests early-stage equity capital ($90K–$250K checks, targeting ~1.3% ownership) in companies led by current students or recent alumni of U.S. colleges, business schools, and PhD programs. Beyond capital, portfolio companies receive warm introductions to top-tier VC firms, mentorship from experienced founders and operators, and access to a long-standing alumni community of investors and unicorn founders. The fund is run by student investment partners organized in regional teams, supported by a full-time HQ staff (DRF Co.).

Product overview

Dorm Room Fund operates as a venture capital fund focused exclusively on student founders. The organization offers a single core investment service rather than a modular product architecture—providing capital investment (typically $90K-$250K per company), mentorship, network access, and community resources to help student entrepreneurs navigate venture fundraising from their earliest stages through seed stage.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Blueprint Project: DRF's intensive program for aspiring investors and founders who identify as Black, Indigenous, or LatinX.
• Women's Founder Track
• Prism Investor Track
• Women's Investor Track
• PHD Track
• Frontier Track

Products and services

• Dorm Room Fund Investment Services Early-stage venture capital investment for student and recent-alumni founders of U.S.-incorporated companies, providing $90K–$250K equity checks (target ~1.3% ownership), introductions to top-tier VC firms, mentorship, and access to the #DRF4Life alumni community.

Named customers5 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/DormRoomFund
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dorm-room-fund
• Facebookfacebook.com/DormRoomFund

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments246 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dorm Room Fund