DraperU Ventures Media Innovation Fellowship

Please note this is an educational fellowship. This is not a paid internship. You are not working for DraperU Ventures, although you can add the experience to your resume as a fellowship.

You will be working on your own portfolio and we will help guide you based on your chosen project. Lodging is covered, but food and transportation are your own responsibility.

Media Innovation Fellowship

This isn’t your typical media internship. You won’t be fetching coffee—unless it’s while interviewing founders who are shaping the future of digital storytelling, immersive technology, and new media.

The Media Innovation Fellowship offers a hands-on, project-driven opportunity to dive deep into media entrepreneurship. Over 5 intensive weeks, you'll develop your own innovative media project under the mentorship of industry leaders, exploring new frontiers in storytelling, journalism, and digital media production.

What You’ll Learn: Media entrepreneurship blends creativity, technology, and strategic thinking. Consider this your immersive bootcamp.

• Media Startup Essentials: Learn what it takes to launch, build, and scale innovative media ventures.
• Emerging Trends: Discover trends shaping digital media, such as interactive storytelling, AI-driven content, and immersive journalism.
• Content & Audience Development: Master audience identification, content strategy, and engagement analytics.
• Pitching & Fundraising: Develop skills to effectively pitch your media concept to investors and stakeholders.
• Project Execution: Create and refine a unique media project from concept to prototype, with guidance from seasoned mentors.

By program’s end, you’ll have practical experience launching a media venture, valuable industry connections, and a polished portfolio project that showcases your vision and talent.

Who We're Looking For: We’re seeking ambitious creators, storytellers, and innovators passionate about pushing boundaries in media. You don't need prior startup experience—just vision and hustle.

• You're fascinated by digital media innovation and storytelling.
• You’re creative, driven, and curious about technology's role in media.
• You're proactive, resourceful, and eager to experiment.
• You aspire to be a media entrepreneur, innovator, or industry leader.

Bonus: Experience with content creation, journalism, digital marketing, or multimedia production.

Fellowship Project Idea: "Immersive News Experience" – Develop a prototype of an interactive, immersive journalism platform leveraging VR/AR technologies to transform how people experience news stories. You’ll research, prototype, and pitch a platform designed to enhance audience empathy and engagement by placing users directly into the story.

Perks:

• Access to industry events, workshops, and networking opportunities. Great content for you to add to your personal portfolio.
• Potential to convert your project into a funded startup or potentially a long-term position.

Program Structure: 5 Weeks of Intensive Media Innovation

Week 1: Orientation & Project Ideation

Dive into the foundations of media entrepreneurship, define your goals, and outline your immersive media project concept. Decide what your media project will cover. Meet the participants in the program that you'll be working with and capturing content for.

Week 2: Research & Audience Strategy

Conduct deep market and audience research. Understand trends, needs, and opportunities to refine your project vision. 4 day leadership bootcamp and content opportunities.

Week 3: Prototyping & Development

Continue working on your project. Work with our team to refine and start putting content together.

Week 4: Pitch Development & User Testing

Refine your media project with real-world feedback. Start sharing bits of your project with the public. Start working on final presentation / pitch to cover the content you created.

Week 5: Final Pitch & Graduation

Share your presentation / pitch your work and final project. Graduate from the fellowship.

We look forward to reviewing your application for the Media Innovation Fellowship. If selected, we will reach out shortly to schedule an interview.

Compensation:

Please note this is an educational fellowship. This is not a paid internship. You are not working for DraperU Ventures, although you can add the experience to your resume as a fellowship.

You will be working on your own portfolio and we will help guide you based on your chosen project. Lodging is covered, but food and transportation are your own responsibility.