For all you MBA grads out there who like me once dreamed of being great venture capitalists in an era where VCs are a vanishing breed, at least in Canada, then this story will give you reason to hope for the future of the industry. It turns out that the Wharton Business School has teamed up with the Utah based, student run, University Venture Fund. What is their objective? According to their press release:

Founded in 2001 at the University of Utah's David Eccles School of Business, UVF is an independent, self-sustaining venture capital company committed to the entrepreneurial education of students at participating universities . . . "We're delighted that students from the Wharton School are now officially on board," said Jared Hutchings, founder and managing director of UVF. "The Wharton team of students offers exceptional expertise from previous work experiences and brings a rigorous analytical approach that reflects the strong Wharton MBA curriculum, so they will be a great asset for us. And UVF can help the Wharton students gain venture capital experience in a very hands-on way. There's no better training than investing real money in real entrepreneurs."

Ah, the idea of investing real money with real entrepreneurs is something so foreign to the Toronto market that I wonder if anyone in our local investment sector remembers the risk-reward charts they once so carefully studied. Remember? In the right sector with the right team early stage risk can result in later stage rewards. Well, at least in Utah.

Want o know more about the fund?

Founded in 2001 at the University of Utah's David Eccles School of Business, University Venture Fund (UVF) is an independent venture capital firm committed to improving the quality of entrepreneurial education for a diverse group of students at its participating universities. The fund is a collaborative effort between students, universities and the professional investment community in which students raise capital, perform due diligence on venture capital opportunities and make investments. In addition to being the largest fund of its kind, UVF is the first fund for which students raise all the capital and the first student-run fund that has a traditional limited-partner relationship with its investors. Each year UVF hosts
University Private Equity Summit when business students from around North America gather to share best practices and learn from investment industry professionals. Online at http://www.uventurefund.com and http://www.uventurefund.com/wharton.