A core flaw in the program, according to Chafkin’s reporting for “The Contrarian,” is the nearly complete lack of any supervision or training. The Thiel Fellowship is sometimes compared to early-stage venture accelerator Ycombinator, but Ycombinator is highly structured, including regular check-ins where participants report their progress. The Thiel Fellowship, at least for its first several years, had no such requirements. Access to Thiel himself was limited, and often perfunctory.
Is Peter Thiel’s Pro-Dropout Fellowship Mostly an Advertisement for Himself?
