Key Takeaways
- • Chicago Booth's Elfman-Wareham Private Equity and Venture Capital Lab combines intensive internships at PE/VC firms with academic coursework, enabling MBA students to analyze real-world investment decisions alongside seasoned practitioners.
- • The program is open to Full-Time, Evening, and Weekend MBA students, with a competitive application and interview process for selection; Winter Quarter 2027 adds a San Francisco-based venture capital immersion option taught at Third Coast Foundry.
- • The Petrick Family Student Fellowship Fund provides financial support for PE/VC Lab participants pursuing out-of-state internships, removing geographic barriers to participation in major investment hubs.
- • Students commit 15-20 hours weekly to internship work on projects ranging from market evaluation to business analysis, while completing coursework on Monday evenings during winter and spring quarters.
- • Professor Chris McGowan leads career-switcher programming with specialized tracks in PE landscape fundamentals and interview preparation, addressing alternative talent pipelines into investment management.
Summary
The Merrick M. Elfman and Therese L. Wareham Private Equity and Venture Capital Lab represents a structured experiential learning program at the University of Chicago's Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, designed to bridge academic training and professional practice in institutional investment management. The program combines an intensive internship at an established PE or VC firm with concurrent academic instruction, allowing students to directly apply theoretical frameworks to real-world investment decisions evaluated by institutional investors.
Eligibility extends across Chicago Booth's MBA offerings, including Full-Time, Evening, and Weekend programs, as well as EMBA and Master in Management students. Participation requires meeting established eligibility standards and passing a competitive application and interview process. The program operates during winter and spring quarters, with coursework held Monday evenings from 6–9 p.m. CT, and students simultaneously maintain 15-20 hours weekly internship commitments at host firms spanning top-tier venture capital, growth equity, and private equity platforms.
Geographic expansion has been a recent program focus. Winter Quarter 2027 introduces a dedicated San Francisco Venture Capital Immersion Program, offering full-time study-away participation at Third Coast Foundry in downtown San Francisco. This expansion reflects institutional recognition of geographic concentration in venture capital markets and provides students access to West Coast startup ecosystems and VC firm operations. Supporting this geographic flexibility, the Petrick Family Student Fellowship Fund provides grant funding to PE/VC Lab participants with out-of-state internships, addressing travel and on-site experience costs that traditionally constrain participation among geographically dispersed cohorts.
Professor Chris McGowan, bringing 23 years of private equity career experience, leads specialized programming for career-switchers, including technical tracks on PE landscape fundamentals and interview preparation. The program targets October 2026 for its next information session, marking the application cycle for Winter Quarter 2027 and spring quarter enrollment. Host firms represent established platforms across Chicago's PE/VC ecosystem, providing internship placements that span venture, growth, and buyout strategies.
Eligibility extends across Chicago Booth's MBA offerings, including Full-Time, Evening, and Weekend programs, as well as EMBA and Master in Management students. Participation requires meeting established eligibility standards and passing a competitive application and interview process. The program operates during winter and spring quarters, with coursework held Monday evenings from 6–9 p.m. CT, and students simultaneously maintain 15-20 hours weekly internship commitments at host firms spanning top-tier venture capital, growth equity, and private equity platforms.
Geographic expansion has been a recent program focus. Winter Quarter 2027 introduces a dedicated San Francisco Venture Capital Immersion Program, offering full-time study-away participation at Third Coast Foundry in downtown San Francisco. This expansion reflects institutional recognition of geographic concentration in venture capital markets and provides students access to West Coast startup ecosystems and VC firm operations. Supporting this geographic flexibility, the Petrick Family Student Fellowship Fund provides grant funding to PE/VC Lab participants with out-of-state internships, addressing travel and on-site experience costs that traditionally constrain participation among geographically dispersed cohorts.
Professor Chris McGowan, bringing 23 years of private equity career experience, leads specialized programming for career-switchers, including technical tracks on PE landscape fundamentals and interview preparation. The program targets October 2026 for its next information session, marking the application cycle for Winter Quarter 2027 and spring quarter enrollment. Host firms represent established platforms across Chicago's PE/VC ecosystem, providing internship placements that span venture, growth, and buyout strategies.
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