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To better get the "seriously, apply on time if at all possible" idea across, I'd emphasize that harj is monitoring late apps. "If you apply on time, all 4 YC p
by jackowayed 17y ago
To better get the "seriously, apply on time if at all possible" idea across, I'd emphasize that harj is monitoring late apps.
"If you apply on time, all 4 YC partners will definitely read your application. If you apply late, our employee will skim through it to see if it looks promising, and only if he thinks it does will any of us even see it."
- ErrantX 17y agoFor some that might actually be an advantage. Think: you know who will initially vet your application (as opposed to the normal process) so you can think how to hook him in. And if you successfully do so your now "recommended" to one of the partners. Could be an advantage for a smart thinking founder :)
- rottencupcakes 17y agopg could correct me on this if i'm wrong, but i get the impression that harj is already vetting all the applications.
- jackowayed 17y agoFrom the blog post pg linked to above: >we say that "groups that apply early have a significant advantage." We're referring to Harj, who has already started to engage with groups that seem promising. Sounds like he's reading the apps and contacting groups if he thinks anything is unclear. All 4 YC partners read them all, at least officially. As volume of applications gets even more ridiculous, I could forsee a future where he screens them all and marks them either "skim" or "read", where skim means "I'm pretty sure they have no hope, just skim it it make sure I didn't miss anything" and read means "I'd definitely consider interviewing them." but they're probably reluctant to do that since it's important that they get the best groups possible, and I highly doubt they'd do that on harj's first cycle. They'll have to be really comfortable with his judgment before they let him prejudice their readings of applications.
- nlabs 17y agoTo cut down the volume of applications, YC should charge an application fee, like most colleges. That will quickly filter out the crap. An app fee is not evil. Id pay $25 or so to guarantee honest, thoughtful consideration by the YC 4.
- Harj 17y agono, everyone on the team reviews the apps. i'm just contacting groups that seem interesting but i want to have some more information about. if you applied early you had a higher chance of being contacted, which is an advantage since you have an extra opportunity to impress.
- chrischen 17y agoI'm just wondering, if we don't get contacted and we applied early, is that a bad sign?
- Harj 17y agono don't read anything into it, there are only so many applicants I can reach out to. there's almost certainly far more that I haven't looked at yet than ones I've looked at and decided not to contact.
- nlabs 17y agoWhew. I got really upset when I heard another group that has my same idea was contacted by you and I wasnt. Thanks for clarifying.
- deleted 17y ago[deleted]
- btilly 17y agoIt seems unlikely to me that that advantage outweighs the disadvantage of having to survive an extra pass, and the disadvantage of pushing busy people to make a decision on you when they are particularly busy. (My experience is that busy people become good at saying no out of self-defense.)
- Harj 17y agoyou'd do more harm than good with this approach. you'd be much better off concentrating on communicating what you perceive are your strengths as a team rather than guessing what you think might hook me in, which will likely be wrong anyway.
- icey 17y agoYou say that now, but wait until you get that bucket of puppies I've just fedexed to you.