Land your next role at a breakout startup
The On Deck First 50 (OD50) fellowship combines a world-class community, expert-led workshops and personalized support to help you find your next role at a high-growth startup and accelerate your career.
Register to our upcoming Q&A session on June 30th
Apply by July 1st to join the next onboarding kicking off on July 12th.






Gain a recognized credential while you:
Bring intentionality to your job search
Grow your professional network
Access unique opportunities
Why do fellows choose OD50?
OD50 helps you gain the skills, community, and support you need to build a meaningful career in the startup world.
Join intimate events with startup thought leaders
Fireside Chats & Panels
Skill Building Workshops
Cross-Fellowship Learning Opportunities




Who should apply?
On Deck First 50 is designed for startup employees who want to be intentional about their next career move or professionals who want to pivot into startups.
Explore other On Deck Programs
Learn moreReady to level up your career?
FAQ
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.
OD50 presents a number of ongoing informal and informal opportunities for job seekers interested in the startup space. For example:
- We invite fellows industry-themed job fairs in partnership with other On Deck fellowships.
-We host bi-weekly recruiting events called Talent Demo Days, where we invite our favorite breakout startups to pitch their open roles to fellows.
- We regularly share exciting job opportunities in our invite-only Slack workspace, and our hundreds of alumni do the same.
- We provide access to On Deck’s Community Directory which allows you to search and connect with thousands of On Deck affiliated startup founders, investors, and operators.
- We have dedicated team members looking for job openings that will match your job search goals.
Our goal is to provide value that far exceeds the $2,490USD fee to participate.
By joining OD50, fellows can benefit from:
-an 8-week cohort-based learning experience
-career coaching from startup experts to help you with anything from figuring out where you fit to helping you negotiate a higher salary
-a team dedicated to helping you supercharge your network
-a steady stream of exciting startup job opportunities not shared anywhere else
-ongoing access to our Slack, Community Directory & Global events calendar (beyond the 8-week fellowship)
-ongoing support from the OD50 team
-hundreds of perks & discounts at startups
The opportunity cost of choosing the wrong startup is huge. By surrounding yourself with a community of experts and peers, you can feel confident about making the leap to something new and exciting.
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.
OD50 is a global community! In our last fellowship, 42% of fellows were not based in the U.S.
Accordingly, our events are virtual, timed with an international audience in mind (most sessions are at 8am or 9am PST). All events are recorded for asynchronous viewing, and time zones are taken into account when assigning fellows to Learning Groups.
Additionally, we do our best to source job opportunities that are open to hiring talent anywhere in the world. Please note that the majority of startups we work with are not in a position to sponsor U.S. work visas.
For those craving an in-person experience, there are also cross-cohort and cross-fellowship Slack channels that allow fellows to connect with others based in their local region for offline meetups.
If you are ready for a career transition, whether that’s to a new industry, job function, or stage of company, OD50 is the place for you!
If you are happy in your current job, a job (e.g. OD Product Management) or industry (OD Fintech) specific fellowship is a better fit. Note that you should already be in the function/industry of the fellowship you are interested in applying to as these fellowships aren’t designed to help you pivot.
If you’re committed to becoming a founder as the next step in your career journey, ODF is the best fit for you. However, if you are trying to decide whether you want to found or join a startup, then OD50 is a better fit to consider your options.
Note: we still offer a lot of cross-over programming and networking events with the various On Deck fellowships!