Last year we launched the first *Women Engineers in Startups series, and our goal was to encourage more women to consider working at high-growth start

Women Engineers in Startups: Tess's Story

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2022-09-29 20:00:25

Last year we launched the first *Women Engineers in Startups series, and our goal was to encourage more women to consider working at high-growth startups.

At YC, most of us have worked at or started startups, and they’ve changed our lives for the better. We’ve seen, firsthand, the impact they can have on one’s life and career. The amount you learn is immense, and a lot of early startup employees go on to start their own companies.

Yet, when we spoke to our founders, we learned that very few women engineers apply for jobs at YC companies. We wondered whether there were misconceptions about startups that we could help clear up, or whether there were resources we could build to connect more women to startup opportunities.

So, we brought together a cohort of women engineers and introduced them to YC founders, engineering managers, recruiters and women who had joined YC startups as early engineers. They came together for three weeks, learned about what startups are looking for, what the work/life balance was like at various companies, and what they should think about and ask when considering companies and roles.

One participant in that first cohort, Tess Huelskamp, accepted a role at Middesk (YC W19), a fast-growing company that helps b2b financial services companies verify business customers. She shared her experience and advice for thinking about joining a startup here: