Startup Success Without The MBA

Kapler entered that world a little sooner. After graduating from NYU with degrees in economics and journalism, she worked for a startup called Biz2Credit. “That’s kind of where I learned the process of launch and iteration—the idea that you quickly develop a product to get it to the market as fast as possible,” she says. “You make a lot of assumptions behind closed doors. There’s no benefit of learning in that.” The one thing she would’ve changed at CourseHorse: “I would have done it earlier.”

It’s not uncommon for MBA students to have studied business and economics in college. In the classes of 2014, 24% of Harvard MBAs, 17% of Stanford MBAs and 27% of Wharton MBAs have undergraduate business degrees. Regardless, neither Kapler nor Parthasarathi see themselves getting MBAs.

“I think the learning we do every day with CourseHorse is kind of an MBA,” Kapler said. “I wholeheartedly believe you can learn and pick up these skills with drive and motivation.”

“For me, I’m not sure what I would get out of going back for an MBA,” Parthasarathi says. “Right now, if I went to grad school, I would learn how to code.”

Before CourseHorse, Kapler and Parthasarathi had already tried founding a company, one that matched college applicants with schools that fit. It never quite took off. “We didn’t really understand how to build the technology,” Parthasarathi says. “We weren’t in the startup mindset.”

They’ve clearly gotten into it by learning on the job—with NYU providing some backup.

 

“MY DIVERSE WORK EXPERIENCE HAS BROUGHT ME HERE”

 

Crowds On Demand is exactly what it sounds like: a company that allows anyone who wants attention to hire paparazzi and adoring fans and trail him wherever he goes.

Adam Swart founded the company in October 2012 while still an undergraduate at the University of California, Los Angeles. His inspiration came from a visit to, of all places, Estonia. As he exited the plane, he spotted a politician being greeted with “pomp and circumstance.” “I didn’t know who this person was,” Swart recalls. “Why wasn’t I greeted like that?”

Right now, Swart employs only two assistants and some 150 actors eager to chase down clients and cause some excitement. Swart got the company off the ground on his own. “I had plenty of money to start the company myself,” he says. A self-taught investor, Swart proves that not all startups need backing from powerful venture capitalists. Crowds On Demand already has an eclectic mix of customers: other startups in Silicon Valley, tourists in China and the Middle East, lesser-known celebrities in Hollywood and public relations firms.

When it comes to running the business, Swart draws insight from his time in other industries. “My diverse work experience has brought me here,” he says. At 22, Swart has already worked in politics, travel and journalism. The fact that he didn’t get a narrowly focused education has given him certain advantages: for example, his time as a journalist taught him how to make his company appealing to the media. (Duly noted.)

Would Swart recommend graduate business school to aspiring entrepreneurs? “It depends on the company,” he thinks. “[Crowds on Demand] is not a company that is related to the material one learns in class.”

In fact, Swart hasn’t even finished his bachelor’s yet. For now, his degree is on hold; Crowds On Demand led to a reduced class schedule. “I’ve always believed that if you find something you like, you should go for it,” he says. “College can wait. It’s not an either-or.”