Exceptional collections frequently arise in algebraic and symplectic geometry. Since the work of Beilinson on coherent sheaves on projective space, exceptional collections have been used to construct derived equivalences. In representation theory, exceptional collections appear for the class of quasi-hereditary algebras. In the first talk I will give an overview over the theory of exceptional collections and quasi-hereditary algebras. In a second talk, I will focus on an approach to quasi-hereditary algebras using exact Borel subalgebras, corings, and A-infinity Koszul duality.