Xfund Ethics Fellows
The Xfund Ethics Fellows 2024 application is now live! Click here to apply!
PEAK Fellows is now Xfund Ethics Fellows! Learn More
Develop guiding principles for entrepreneurial leadership
Xfund Ethics Fellows, formerly PEAK Fellows, offers 16 Stanford undergraduate and co-term students the opportunity to develop their personal principles for entrepreneurial leadership. These principles are designed to help guide each fellow as they shape teams and align their career decisions with their values. Over the course of a quarter, fellows build a values-based entrepreneurial mindset and toolkit within the close-knit cohort through honest discussions and mentoring from alumni and peers. Xfund Ethics Fellows is part of the Ethics in Entrepreneurship Project through STVP, the Stanford Engineering Entrepreneurship Center.
Current Cohort
Shray Alag
Computer Science
Daryl Budiman
Symbolic Systems (Human-Computer Interaction) and Product Design
Anna Edmonds
Computer Science
Karetina Fekade-Tessema
International Relations
Aurora Feng
Economics
Henry Hill-Gorman
Econonomics and Philosophy (BA), Media and Business (MA)
Jinyoung Kim
Math
Nahum Maru
Computer Science
Sofie Roux
Civil Engineering (Architecture) and Mechanical Engineering (Design)
Zane Sabbagh
Symbolic Systems (BS), Computer Science (MS)
Sou Min Shin
International Relations
Mario Sumali
Computer Science
Kevina Wang
Computer Science (Computational Biology)
Ecem Yilmazhaliloglu
Computer Science
Zach Zafran
Mathematical and Computational Science
Jessica Zhang
Symbolic Systems
Student Leaders
Jason Ping
Management Science & Engineering
Sofie Roux
Civil Engineering (Architecture) and Mechanical Engineering (Design)
Jinyoung Kim
Math
Student Co-Founders
Brooke Martin
Management Science & Engineering
Gopal Raman
Economics
Faculty Advisor
Mentors
Program info and Application
What to Expect
The program is an opportunity for 16 Stanford undergraduate and co-term students to explore what it means to develop and practice principles in the context of entrepreneurial businesses. It places students who are working in technology ventures into cohorts of eight students to learn with peers and gain mentorship.
Through readings and bi-weekly meetings, students define a set of principles that resonate with them. These principles will serve as guides for how Fellows shape future teams and select workplaces that align with their values. Fellows engage in small-group discussions with industry guests offering unique perspectives from their own entrepreneurial experiences.
After the program comes to a close, students come away with a heightened understanding of their own values, a close-knit community of peers, and the tools necessary to begin to brave ethical dilemmas in the future.
Application Information
The application consists of two rounds. The first round consists of completing the XFund Ethics Fellows written application. The second round of the application is a group interview. Applicants can expect to hear back early Spring quarter.
We encourage all Stanford students who have either had previous or hope to one day have entrepreneurial experiences.
The application for the 2024 Xfund Ethics Fellows is now open!
Application Deadline: Sunday, April 7 at 11:59 p.m. PT
Virtual Info Sessions
If you are interested in learning more about the Xfund Ethics Fellows Program, we highly encourage applicants to attend one of the two virtual information sessions below. These sessions are an opportunity to learn more about the program and hear directly from past fellows.
- Thursday, March 7 — 7:30 PM – 8:30 PM PT (Week 9, Winter Quarter)
- Wednesday April 3 — 7:30 PM – 8:30 PM PT (Week 1, Spring Quarter)
Please email Jason Ping, Jinyoung Kim or Sofie Roux with any questions about applying to the Xfund Ethics Fellows program.
Come for the mission and stay for the community. This is the type of company culture that I aim to create as an entrepreneur and I have the [Xfund Ethics] fellows to thank for the building blocks of a principled entrepreneurship foundation.
B.S. Management Science & Engineering
[Xfund Ethics] fellows envisions a future entrepreneurial ecosystem at Stanford that is as ethical, as it is inclusive. It dares to imagine a Silicon Valley with leaders whose success is as lauded as its principles. I’m proud to consider myself a part of this movement.
B.S. Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction
M.S. Management Science & Engineering
A lot of students graduating from college end up working at companies where their core values don’t align with the company’s set of principles. The [Xfund Ethics] Fellows program helped me formulate my own set of morals to go by in all the work I do, and now I strive to consider the ethics and social impact of my decisions in my daily life.
Mechanical Engineering
The [Xfund Ethics] fellowship has brought value to my life beyond entrepreneurship. I developed a framework that consistently informs and benefits my individual interactions and evaluations of the world at large. I have been motivated to pursue a mission that enhances the global community because I feel confident in the preparation that [Xfund Ethics Fellows] provided. I look forward to continuing to grow and pursue that mission with the community I found at [Xfund Ethics Fellows].
Computer and Design Engineering
Alumni
Acknowledgements
STVP, the Stanford Engineering Entrepreneurship Center, extends its deep appreciation to Brandon Farwell, Partner at Xfund, for supporting this program for Stanford students.
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