Sign In

Rob Berk

Author of Why Wait? | Founder of Solvit & Apprentice

Rob Berk is the CEO of Apprentice, a platform dedicated to empowering college students through mentorship and growth opportunities.

Apprentice utilizes a unique Matching Process that considers skills, experiences, certifications, and personality tests to connect entrepreneurs and business leaders with suitable apprentices.

Rob Berk, a Hamilton College graduate with honors in Government and minors in Economics and Art History, co-founded Apprentice in collaboration with his mentor, Dave Kerpen, to revolutionize the lives of college students and entrepreneurs.

Prior to Apprentice, Rob launched Solvit, a digital branding company, during his sophomore year at Hamilton College.

Rob's early career includes working as an executive assistant to Dave Kerpen, managing projects for high-value clients, co-authoring a book on social media, and launching successful marketing campaigns.

Having supported over 250 entrepreneurs, Apprentice has created paid work opportunities generating more than $1M in income for college students.

Rob published a book titled 'Why Wait? How I Jump-Started My Entrepreneurial Journey Before Graduating Into a COVID-19 World – And How You Can, Too!' on his graduation day.

Rob Berk resides in New York City and has a fondness for dogs, though his current living situation doesn't allow for pets.

Highlights

Dec 22 · linkedin

I’m excited to share that I’ve exited from my roles in and ownership of Apprentice.

I never expected that the concept I first presented in 2018 as a Junior in Hamilton’s Pitch Competition would grow to reach over 1,000 students and 500 entrepreneurs.

I’m deeply grateful to have worked with incredible people who became great friends. I am most proud of all of your continued growth and success beyond Apprentice - Sam Nesbitt, Eitan Miller, Lisa Smart, Darius ShayanSmith, Maddie Tashlik, Lauren Fogel, Keertana Manchikanti, Sara Bermudez, Chance Dillon, Harrison Strohl, Jared Whittle, Chip Daley, Savannah DaSilva, Lindsey Feinstein, Tiffani Britton, Benjamin Grimes, Maddie Browning, Matt Moore, Sean Davis, Erika Smith, Madeleine Dawson, and many more! I'm looking forward to staying lifelong friends :)

I would tell my college-self to:

  1. Enjoy the journey - nothing will change after reaching the destination 
  2. Measure what truly matters - not only vanity metrics (revenue)
  3. Record daily habits & weekly activities that track towards monthly & quarterly goals - to better understand the differences between leading & lagging indicators  
  4. Invest in the team and do the right thing
  5. Sleep, exercise, and spend time with friends

I look forward to seeing the direction my co-founder, Dave Kerpen, takes with the company and I’m grateful for what we’ve built through the last four years. To everyone that has been and will continue to be part of Apprentice’s journey - thank you!

I’ve realized that my identity can be much more than a business or a career. I’m excited to learn more through new experiences and find more ways to continue to make a positive impact on people.

I’ve started working at Five Iron Golf - and have really enjoyed my first month as a Golf Associate at the newest location near Grand Central.

I’m open to anything and attached to nothing.

#WhyWait?

Dec 1 · linkedin

During my first year at Hamilton College, I began working with my mentor, Dave Kerpen. At the time, I didn’t know it, but I had become the first of thousands of Apprentices. 

In 2019, we launched Apprentice to give college students access to real-world business experience and entrepreneurs access to the most motivated students.

I am deeply grateful for the friendships made, the lessons learned, and our incredible team through our first three years.

I am excited to share that I am taking a central role as Apprentice’s sole CEO.

As we move forward, I will continue to pursue our mission to empower students by creating growth and mentorship opportunities.

Dave Kerpen, I look forward to continuing our work together and learning from your experiences as our new Executive Chairman.

💫 Sam Nesbitt, you are a vocal, confident, and supportive leader. It’s so much fun working together and I'm excited for you to be our new Chief Revenue Officer.

Since our launch, we have supported more than 250 entrepreneurs in growing their businesses and have created paid work opportunities, generating over $1M in income for college students. And we are just getting started!

We’ll continue to develop Apprentice’s platform as we scale towards our Big Hairy Audacious Goal of transforming the lives of 1 million students over the next decade!

I’m so grateful and appreciative of our team: Chance Dillon, Lisa Smart, Darius ShayanSmith, Savannah DaSilva, Madison Kim, Keertana Manchikanti, Maddie Tashlik, Eitan Miller, Oliver Segall, Ben Giesser, Lauren Fogel, Sara Bermudez, Chip Daley, and many more, thank you!!

#whywait

Rob Berk
Add to my network

Location

New York, New York, United States