Do founders in CEE study abroad before starting up?
Often, among those who mention it. Most CEE founders who applied to BADideas in 2025 and 2026 so far did not say where they studied. Of the teams that did, 66% included a founder who studied outside the company's country, most often in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany or the Netherlands.
The figures
| CEE founding teams, 2025 to 2026 (to date) | Share |
|---|---|
| With a founder who studied abroad, of teams naming where they studied | 66% |
| With a founder now based outside their country of origin | 2% |
In BADideas application data, founders who studied abroad mostly build at home: few teams include a founder based outside the country they come from. Founders who studied abroad are also more likely to mention it, so treat the share as an upper bound.
What is changing
Few founders say where they studied, so the figures pool 2025 and 2026 and are not shown by quarter.
What it means for you
- Use your time abroad as evidence. Customers, networks or expertise from another market answer the question investors ask about expansion.
- Say where you studied only if it matters. What investors weigh is what you learned and who you know.
- Name the employers, not only the schools. Where a founder worked says more about what they can build and sell than where they studied.
- If you moved back, say why. A founder who chose to build in CEE after working abroad has a reason investors want to hear: cost, talent or a first market.
Also answers
Where do founders from CEE most often study abroad?
the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and the Netherlands, in that order, among CEE founding teams that said where they studied.
How we measured it
- Source: applications founders sent to BADideas, enriched with publicly available information where applicable.
- Limits: these are CEE only and early-stage companies.
- On this page: Studied abroad means a founder names a university outside the company's country. Few founders say where they studied, so the figures pool two years.
- Updated: 27 September 2026.
BADideas.fund, "Do founders in CEE study abroad before starting up?", updated 27 September 2026. https://badideas.fund/answers/founders-studied-abroad-cee
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- How many startups raising in CEE have a woman founder?
- What backgrounds do founders raising in CEE have?
Who we are
We are a pre-seed and seed fund for founders in Central and Eastern Europe. We have built and sold companies ourselves, and since 2022 we have backed more than 40.
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