Take your content game to the next level and elevate the voice of the Australian and New Zealand startup ecosystem.

Startmate’s Media Fellowship is a community-driven bootcamp that will help you hone your content skills and carve out a niche in the tech-media landscape.

You’ll learn from internationally recognised content creators, be supported by some of the best journalists and content experts in the region, and most importantly, be surrounded by like-minded peers as you level-up your craft.

Our MVP cohort kicked off in April. More info about our next cohort coming soon.

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Inspired by Startmate’s original mentors.

First Believers is a six-month program inspired by Startmate’s original mentors. Back in 2010, these mentors believed in and backed early-stage Aussie founders. We're on a mission to find more people like them.We believe that to create a truly diverse and powerful startup ecosystem across Australia and New Zealand, we need fresh perspectives, thinking and networks at the investment table. First Believers is the catalyst for a new generation of investors to hone their craft.

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Technical to non-technical

“By the third day of my internship, I was already pitching to the Queensland Small Business Commission.”
— Tsamara, Student Fellow (Summer 2020/21)

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Solo founder to founding team

“The great thing about hiring through Startmate is the people who join through one of the Fellowship programs are already pre-selected for being amazing. They are looking for change and roles where they can have a big impact, and everything that working for a startup can provide.”
— Gridcognition (Startmate, Mel20 Alumni)

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Solo founder to founding team

“Why does the UK have such a financial services driven economy? Basically … ask the smartest undergraduates ‘what are you going to do next?’, they're all like, ‘oh, I'm going to go work at Goldman Sachs’ or whatever. … The reason Silicon Valley is so special? It is the one place in the world where [ambitious students] say ‘we’ll start a company’.”
— Matt Clifford, Founder at Entrepreneur First.

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Elevate your brand as a next-generation content creator

The Media Fellowship is propelled by a community of passionate storytellers obsessed with startups, technology, innovation and the impact all three have on culture and society. You’ll shape your unique voice as you shine a spotlight on the incredible growth of our startup ecosystem.


Stretch yourself alongside a network of highly-motivated peers

Half of the challenge is getting started, so we’ll surround you with a squad of like-minded creators to keep you accountable to your goals, and encourage you to stretch your creativity in ways you never knew were possible.

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Leverage the support of the region’s best writers, podcasters, journalists and public relations experts

You’ll learn from those who’ve carved incredible pathways through the content and media landscape across the region, in both group and 1:1 environments.

Why are we launching the Startmate Media Fellowship?

Over the last decade, Australia and New Zealand’s startup ecosystem has grown faster than the media landscape could keep up with.

We rely on the work of StartupDaily, SmartCompany and the tech columns in the broadsheets to provide comprehensive coverage of all the news and issues of the day, but the reality is, there are so many more stories to tell and so many new voices to unleash.

With the rise of the creator economy acting as a catalyst for creatives to double-down on their craft, we want to create a springboard for this talent, and garner more attention for our expanding ecosystem. In the end, increasing the value we place on startup stories is a win for everyone.

Who is right for the Media Fellowship?

Our ideal Media Fellows are launching their own content properties, whether that be blogging, podcasting or social media.

They are founders and operators working in startups and venture capital and looking to strengthen their brand and positioning through content.

They are journalists and writers wanting to expand their networks and knowledge in the startup ecosystem.

They are entrepreneurs with a vision of the next platform brand in startup media. 

For our MVP, we want to bring together an eclectic mix of backgrounds and focus areas, so if you think you could get value from the Media Fellowship, then we think there’s value in you getting involved!

Do you need to have published anything yet?

No. The Media Fellowship is about supporting you in sharing your content with the world, whether it’s the first or fiftieth thing you’ve shipped.

What else do I need to know?

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This is our MVP cohort of the Media Fellowship, but we expect it to run once more in late-2022. As the program is run remotely, we encourage you to apply from anywhere across Australia or New Zealand. Each cohort will be made up of about 30 people across a range of backgrounds, locations and levels of experience.

The Startmate Media Fellowship requires a time commitment of two to three hours per week to engage with the content and community. The time commitment in the second half of the program will scale up as you focus on content creation and peer-review feedback, so the level of effort is up to you. Ideally everyone will ship four to six new pieces of high-quality content over the duration of the program

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The Media Fellowship program fee is $1,100 including GST. Startmate offers full scholarships for the Media Fellowship program in special circumstances. The fee will only be invoiced after program acceptance and can be paid upfront or via instalments.

Want to join our MVP Media Fellowship cohort?