Do YC after you graduate: Early decision for students
Apply now, do YC after you graduate. For students who want to finish school before doing YC. Get funded the moment you’re accepted.
Sneha and Anushka, founders of Spur (S24), applied in Fall 2023 for the S24 batch using Early Decision. This allowed them to graduate in May 2024 and then do YC. They’ve since raised $4.5M from top investors for their AI-powered QA testing tools.
How Early Decision Works
Early Decision lets you apply to YC while you’re still in school and reserve your spot in a future batch. For example, you apply in Fall of this year, for a spot in the summer batch of the following year. You submit the same YC application as if you were applying for the upcoming batch. If you’re accepted, we’ll fund you immediately and hold your place for after you graduate.
Is It for You?
This program is designed for students who want to finish their degree before starting a company. If you’re considering working on your own startup after graduation, Early Decision makes it easy to lock in your spot.
Even if you’re not completely sure yet if you want to do a startup, you should still apply. There is no downside.
Also, if you’re not in your final year, you can still apply for Early Decision. You’ll be able to finish the school year you’re currently in, and then either join a later batch or decide to drop out and start sooner.
The Timeline
The most common path is students applying in the fall of their final year and joining the summer batch after graduating in Spring. But you can apply for any batch in the future within reason. The application and interview process is the same as if you were applying for the upcoming batch. Once you’re accepted, YC funds you right away and confirms your future batch.
How to Apply
When you fill out your YC application, you’ll see a question asking which batch you want to apply for. Simply select “A batch after Winter 2026” to indicate you’re applying for Early Decision, and tell us which batch you’d like to be considered for.
The batch preference question in the YC application
Why We Created Early Decision
Many students want to finish their degree or complete more of their education before starting a company. Also we know that many students spend a lot of time in Fall or during their final year applying for jobs or internships. Early Decision gives students another option: apply to YC and bet on yourself.
