Key Takeaways
- • A five-person team from SOM (School of Management) won the Northeast Regional competition in the Venture Capital Investment Competition (VCIC), advancing to finals at what organizers describe as the world's largest VC simulation competition with 120+ participating institutions.
- • Students managed a fictitious $100 million fund over a 36-hour competition period in February, conducting real due diligence on active startups, structuring term sheets, and presenting investment theses to mock investment committees composed of seasoned industry investors.
- • The winning team leveraged cross-functional expertise spanning healthcare, engineering, technology, financial services, venture capital, and consulting, with members assigned to startup evaluations based on their professional backgrounds and domain knowledge.
- • The competition structure required students to analyze pitch decks within 24 hours, conduct in-person founder interviews at regionals, and integrate real-time feedback from professional judges—creating pressure conditions that participants described as substantially more demanding than typical classroom simulations.
- • VCIC, organized by Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina, operates as a comprehensive VC process simulator where students conduct due diligence, structure deal terms, and defend investment decisions against professional investor scrutiny.
Summary
A team of five students from SOM advanced to the finals of the Venture Capital Investment Competition (VCIC) after winning the Northeast Regional round, completing a 36-hour sprint in February that tested their ability to evaluate real startups under authentic market conditions. The team—comprising Parmjot Gill '26, Ojaswi Atrey '26, Ari Kanner '27, Duyen Pham '26, and Kenza Moussaoui Rahali '26—managed a fictional $100 million fund while conducting due diligence on actual startups actively seeking capital, structuring deal terms, and defending their investment recommendations to mock investment committees.
The VCIC, operated by Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina, attracts over 120 undergraduate and graduate institutions annually and simulates the complete venture capital investment cycle. The competition requires students to perform institutional-grade analysis: evaluating startup pitch materials, meeting founders in person, structuring term sheets with negotiated economics, and presenting investment theses to panels of professional investors who serve as judges. According to Gill, the experience proved substantially more demanding than traditional classroom environments, describing it as a "sleepless" marathon where teams are "pressure-tested in a way you often don't get in simulated environments."
The SOM team's competitive advantage derived from deliberate diversity across functional expertise. Team members represented four different degree programs and brought experience in healthcare, engineering, technology, financial services, venture capital, and management consulting. The group received startup pitch decks 24 hours before the regional competition and strategically assigned companies to individual members based on their professional backgrounds and domain expertise. Following individual assessments, the team reconvened to identify critical value drivers and potential deal-breakers for each investment opportunity. During the actual competition, students conducted in-person founder interviews and incorporated real-time feedback from industry judges, requiring continuous recalibration of investment theses under time pressure. This approach—combining specialized knowledge with collaborative decision-making and professional feedback integration—enabled the team to advance from internal qualifying rounds through Northeast Regionals to the national finals stage.
The VCIC, operated by Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina, attracts over 120 undergraduate and graduate institutions annually and simulates the complete venture capital investment cycle. The competition requires students to perform institutional-grade analysis: evaluating startup pitch materials, meeting founders in person, structuring term sheets with negotiated economics, and presenting investment theses to panels of professional investors who serve as judges. According to Gill, the experience proved substantially more demanding than traditional classroom environments, describing it as a "sleepless" marathon where teams are "pressure-tested in a way you often don't get in simulated environments."
The SOM team's competitive advantage derived from deliberate diversity across functional expertise. Team members represented four different degree programs and brought experience in healthcare, engineering, technology, financial services, venture capital, and management consulting. The group received startup pitch decks 24 hours before the regional competition and strategically assigned companies to individual members based on their professional backgrounds and domain expertise. Following individual assessments, the team reconvened to identify critical value drivers and potential deal-breakers for each investment opportunity. During the actual competition, students conducted in-person founder interviews and incorporated real-time feedback from industry judges, requiring continuous recalibration of investment theses under time pressure. This approach—combining specialized knowledge with collaborative decision-making and professional feedback integration—enabled the team to advance from internal qualifying rounds through Northeast Regionals to the national finals stage.
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