Today we’re talking about getting recommendations from Alumni for your accelerator program application. These recommendations are very important, but there is some nuance.
1. You don’t need 25 recommendations.
This is not a game of Pokemon. Spending dozens of hours collecting numerous endorsements is probably not a good use of time, better to get a smaller number of more meaningful recommendations instead.
2. Focus on Alumni you already know well.
The ideal situation is a strong reference from an alum that knows you really well. This is preferable to numerous lukewarm recommendations.
3. Hustle if you have to.
If you don’t know any program alumni, it’s ok to get a couple of recommendations by hustling on social media or networking to alumni. Just don’t make this option your first choice.
Best of luck out there.
Sterling Road invests in idea stage and pre-seed B2B startups based in the US, Canada and UK.
