On Deck First 50 (OD50) is an 8-week program for ambitious job-seekers looking to land roles at breakout, early-stage companies alongside a supportive community of peers.
The company you work for can change your career. The OD50 team is dedicated to helping you identify and access promising startup opportunities. Hear from our Program Director, Anthony Nardini!
Boost the mechanics of your job search by mastering a range of areas, from direction-setting and storytelling to interviews and compensation negotiation through exclusive access to Pave compensation data.
Whether you’re a startup veteran or a seasoned Big Tech professional, OD50 gives you the tools to build a global network within the startup ecosystem.
Get exclusive access to early-stage job opportunities sourced from the On Deck community and get pitched by startup founders on why their companies are the best places to work.
Everything is off the record. On Deck First 50 Fellows are searching for something deeper in their lives or making big transitions, and many have not yet have publicly shared this with friends, family, or employers. We’ll honor that.
At Talent Demo Days – events that give fellows access to startups that are actively looking for top talent. Over 130 founders have pitched so far this year!
You’ll have access to 5-7 live events per week. Most fellows attend 1-3 discussions per week about which they’re most excited, but you can choose as many or as few as you like based on your goals.
The team behind OD50 has a unique mix of experience having worked at a range of organizations from early-stage startups to large enterprises.
Programming for OD50 is 5-7 hours per week. You can dive into everything, or take a step back when you’re too busy and participate on an asynchronous basis (most sessions are recorded). The community will be there for you.
"Everyone in the program genuinely wanted to best serve one another during their time together and most often that took the form of, ‘Have you had a chance to talk to x yet, I think you would totally bond over [insert topic]. Let me connect you!"
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"I can honestly say that I wouldn’t have found my new role without OD50 — I met the founders through a Talent Demo Day! Special shoutout to my learning group for all the support and laughs during the process as well as the OD50 network for always being available to help."
"If you are an operating leader considering your next act in world-changing start-ups, highly recommend @beondeck’s OD50. The programming & community as part of this program is TOP notch. Your network and mindset will expand instantaneously."
"Signed my offer today — they invented the role for me because they liked me so much! I'm so excited for this next step, and I couldn't have done it without the confidence I gained through OD50. Also a HUGE shoutout to my learning group — they're the real MVPs who provided encouragement and help navigating interviews and offers."
"I interviewed many MBAs to explore that path. Not worth the time or $ to me. I’m using OD50 to pivot from consulting to startupland instead for 1% of the cost."
"I started with my new company today! Incredibly thankful for OD50; from the amazing program which helped me refine my approach, to the 1:1s where fellows shared their experience leaving jobs without backups, to the community for being so dang hungry for what's next, and the sessions that turned job apps to a tried-and-true process. Thank you all!"
"Highly recommend the OD50 program. The team is awesome, and your peers in the program will be super high caliber (we’ve recruited multiple candidates from this pool!)"
"The fellowship is a tremendous source of information and connections to support a healthy, intentional startup job search!"
"In this last round of recruiting, @beondeck helped me immensely. I went into the program not knowing what type of role I wanted next - just that I was ready for a change. 8 weeks, many sessions, and so many new friends/advocates later, I can’t recommend this fellowship enough.”
"OD50 is the beacon of light that guides you through dark waters. When I didn't know what to do, the fellowship's team, resources, guidance, and community helped me find my way."
"OD50 had excellent tactical training, great folks to meet and talk to, and gave me the freedom to explore what's next!"
"The team have built something truly special at #OD50 and joining was one of the best career decisions I ever made. Looking forward to life as an On Deck alum!"
"OD50 builds a virtual community of peers at the same career stage, with the same goals, and provides enough structure and encouragement to help us help each other."
Access to OD50 is $2,490 (lump sum or 4 equal installments). After acceptance, we’ll award need-based scholarships through the On Deck Access Fund.
To be a good fit for OD50, you are probably:
* An outstanding performer in your respective industry / job function
* Mentally ready for your next role, whether or not you currently have a job!
* Entrepreneurial, with a desire to help build an early-stage startup.
* Eager to be an active participant in a growing community, as much of the value of On Deck comes from the network and peer-to-peer connections.
All sessions, content, and interactions are completely off the record, including any acknowledgement of a Fellow’s participation. Some OD50 Fellows choose to be public about their involvement, while many more do not, especially those who are currently employed full time.
Everyone in the program is searching for something deeper in their next career chapter and making a big transition. Many have not publicly shared this journey with friends, family, or employers. We and all Fellows will honor that.
Also note that speaker sessions are recorded, which is beneficial from a scheduling perspective, but also important for a Fellow who happens to know a presenter.
Yes! OD50 is for people joining early-stage startups, regardless of role. There will be engineers, data scientists, and product managers alongside growth, sales, marketing, HR, and operations folks since all of these roles are essential to turning a startup’s idea into reality.
Fellows targeting similar roles will be paired so that they can share insights, suggestions, and potential connections to help each other through their respective journeys.
No problem! OD50 is broadly designed for two groups of people, with content specifically created for each:
* Fellows trying to pivot their career into startups.
* Fellows already working in tech who want to be intentional about the next steps on their career path.
The opportunity cost of choosing the wrong startup is huge. Surround yourself with a community of experts and peers to help you make an informed decision on what’s next, and get access to roles sourced from the On Deck community.
Talent Demo Days are valuable opportunities that occur on a recurring basis, however, if you can’t attend or don’t see companies of interest, you will also have access to On Deck’s Talent Hub – a comprehensive job board that's available to you throughout the fellowship.
Tuition is $2,490 (lump sum or 4 equal installments). After acceptance, we’ll award need-based scholarships through the On Deck Access Fund.
Yes! Our goal is to make the Fellowship accessible to the absolute best talent, no matter what their situation.
While many eligible applicants do have the means to support themselves, many others don’t. We’re excited to be able to offer scholarships to join the Fellowship through the On Deck Access Fund.
There are no fees to apply so please submit an application to be considered for the fellowship — you’ll have the option to request financial assistance if you receive an offer to join OD50.
Yes: OD50 is run entirely remotely. This enables participation from all corners of the world. We’ve spent the past few ODF cohorts mastering the playbook for building remote communities and relationship building online, and will apply the same approach here.
Post-COVID, we’ll return to organizing offline programming like dinners, small gatherings, and retreats, but the core Fellowship will remain a remote-first experience.
You can view our values here, but to summarize: Service, Confidentiality, Respect, and Family.
We support fellows until they get their new jobs and for as long as they want to remain engaged after that!
If you’re committed to the founder path as the next step in your career journey (anywhere from ideation to cofounder dating and MVP building to first fundraise), the Founder Fellowship is definitely the right fit!
If you’re trying to make the founder vs joiner decision or likely want to join a startup as an early employee, then First 50 will be the best place to help you figure things out, from direction-setting to interview prep and offer negotiation.
We have a lot of cross-over between the two with fellows who do one and then the other as they figure things out. We also share some mutually-relevant programming.
On Deck Catalyst is designed for early-career individuals who want to make the most of their current position, or decide what to do next (found, join, or invest in startups), and are looking for a community of outstanding peers to grow alongside in the years to come.
OD50 includes some exceptional early-career individuals (~15% of the cohort) who are focused on finding their next role as their biggest immediate priority.
Many early career OD50 fellows will choose to join a later cohort of ODC after they find that next role. We also share some mutually-relevant programming.
Each of On Deck’s position-based fellowships include some job-seekers in the cohort, people who are clear on what role they want and how to get it so are leveraging the community to network with peers. But the primary content is designed for people who are looking to level-up in their current jobs.
If you are looking for help navigating your career journey, from direction-setting and storytelling through to interview prep and negotiation, then you should join OD50, which includes job-seekers across all functions.
We have a lot of cross-over between the two with fellows who do one and then the other as they figure things out. We also share some mutually-relevant programming.
Each of On Deck’s sector-based fellowships include some job-seekers in the cohort, people who are clear on what role they want and how to get it so are leveraging the On Deck community to network with others who care just as deeply about the space as them.
If you are looking for help navigating your career journey, from direction-setting and storytelling through to interview prep and negotiation, then you should join OD50, which includes job-seekers focused across all sectors.
We have a lot of cross-over between the two with fellows who do one and then the other as they figure things out. We also share some mutually-relevant programming.
