Coop Career
COOP Careers is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2014 that runs a tuition-free, 16-week career fellowship for first-generation and low-income college graduates across Data Analytics, Digital Marketing, and Financial Services tracks in five U.S. metros, funded by donations and corporate grants.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersNew City, United States
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Coop Career does
COOP Careers is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2014 by Kalani Leifer, a former Teach For America high school history teacher, to address underemployment among first-generation and low-income college graduates who hold bachelor's degrees but lack the social capital, networks, and digital skills to access career-track roles. The organization operates a tuition-free, 16-week fellowship program delivering 200 hours of hybrid instruction (primarily virtual via Zoom with monthly in-person networking sessions) across three cohort-based tracks—Data Analytics, Digital Marketing, and Financial Services—covering technical ("Head"), soft ("Heart"), and job search ("Hustle") competencies, plus industry-recognized certifications (Google Data Analytics Certificate, Google AI Essentials, CFI Corporate Finance Foundations) and an applied learning capstone. Fellows are organized into cohorts of 16-20 supported by 4 alumni "captain" coaches drawn from roughly 500 active alumni volunteers, with the program operating across five major U.S. metropolitan areas (New York City, Bay Area, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Miami) and enrolling approximately 2,000 fellows annually across spring and fall cycles, contributing to a cumulative alumni base of over 10,000 (8,500+ having completed the program).
The fellowship model is fundamentally network-mediated: employer partnerships with firms including Google, Microsoft, Salesforce, TikTok, Meta, LinkedIn, Visa, Adyen, Blackstone Career Pathways, J.P. Morgan Chase, Bloomberg, Barclays, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, and Publicis Media provide curriculum input, mock interviews, panel volunteering, open houses, and direct hiring pipelines, with alumni being 2.3x more likely to secure college-level roles than underemployed peers and achieving a median starting salary of approximately $53,000 (~$75,000 within five years). COOP does not operate proprietary technology products; its delivery stack consists of standard virtual meeting platforms, web/content properties (cooperativeers.org, shop.coopcareers.org), and partner-provided AI tooling integrated into alumni career services.
Revenue derives entirely from philanthropic sources—individual donors, foundation grants (including $1,000,000+ gifts from MacKenzie Scott, Tony and Sandra Tamer, the Carson Family Charitable Trust, the Raymond Debbane Family Foundation, Katherine Farley and Jerry Speyer, and Vanguard Charitable, plus a $4.3M CD&R Foundation grant in 2023), and corporate partners, many of whom double as employer partners and alumni hirers. The fellowship is free and unpaid; 78%+ of expenses are directed to direct program costs. Governance is provided by a board chaired by Tony Tamer (H.I.G. Capital founder) and including Ken Chenault (General Catalyst), Ray Debbane (Invus), Scott Belsky (A24), Katherine Farley, Tanya Barnes (JPMorgan), Russ Carson, and Ghislain Gouraige (NewEdge Wealth), with the majority of HQ staff being COOP alumni themselves.
Coop Career firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Coop Career
- Legal name
- COOP Careers, Inc.
- Website
- https://coopcareers.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- COOP Careers is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2014 that runs a tuition-free, 16-week career fellowship for first-generation and low-income college graduates across Data Analytics, Digital Marketing, and Financial Services tracks in five U.S. metros, funded by donations and corporate grants.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Coop Career industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Workforce Development Fellowship / Career Training Services
- NAICS
- Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Professional and Management Development Training (61143), Technical and Trade Schools (6115), Computer Training (611420)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Mentorship & Coaching (Career, Academic, Industry-Specific) (EDAMAKAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Career Readiness & Employability Skills (Resume, Interview, Networking) (EDAMAKAG), Alumni, Peer & Community Networking Programs (EDAMAKAM)
Keywords
Where Coop Career is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New City
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices6 records
Markets served
Coop Career business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Donations and Grants: COOP is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization funded by individual donors, foundation grants, and corporate partnerships. The fellowship is free for all participants, funded entirely by supporters.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | One time/ perpetual license | Free Fellowship Program |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
Coop Career product offering
Product offeringCore offering
COOP Careers delivers a tuition-free, 16-week career accelerating fellowship for first-generation and low-income college graduates, comprising 200 hours of hybrid training across three tracks: Data Analytics, Digital Marketing, and Financial Services. The program is led by alumni near-peer coaches (captains) in cohorts of 16-20 fellows, includes industry-recognized certifications and a capstone project, and continues with alumni services such as job board access, employer referrals, and AI-powered career tools. The fellowship is delivered at no cost to participants and is funded by philanthropic donations, foundation grants, and corporate partnerships.
Product overview
COOP Careers offers a tuition-free, 16-week career accelerating fellowship for first-generation and low-income college graduates. The fellowship operates across three tracks: Data Analytics, Digital Marketing, and Financial Services. Fellows meet in cohorts of 16-20 peers, led by alumni captains, for 200 hours of hybrid instruction covering Head (hard skills), Heart (soft skills), and Hustle (job search skills) competencies. The program includes industry-recognized certifications (Google Data Analytics Certificate, Google AI Essentials, CFI Corporate Finance Foundations), an applied learning capstone project, and ongoing alumni services including job board access, employer events, and AI-powered career tools. Alumni join a network of over 8,500 members with continued support for up to 8 months post-completion.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- COOP Careers Fellowship - Data Analytics Track A 16-week intensive fellowship track teaching data analytics skills including Excel, SQL, Tableau, and R programming, preparing fellows for entry-level data analyst positions.
- COOP Careers Fellowship - Digital Marketing Track A 16-week fellowship track covering SEO, SEM, paid social, media planning and buying, and strategy, preparing fellows for entry-level digital marketing roles.
- COOP Careers Fellowship - Financial Services Track A 16-week fellowship track providing comprehensive training in financial services fundamentals, regulatory environments, statistics, Tableau, and data-driven presentations for careers in finance.
- Captain Program Alumni volunteer leadership opportunity where former fellows facilitate workshops, support cohort career development, and prepare current fellows for program touch points and job expectations.
- Alumni Services Ongoing career support, alumni job board access, exclusive partner events, AI-powered career tools, free career coaching, and social work resources for program graduates.
- COOP Swag Store Online merchandise store offering COOP branded items for alumni and supporters.
Quantifiable outcome
- 2.3x more likely to find college-level roles within 12 months
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Coop Career
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Coop Career technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability2 records
Coop Career partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.
- BarclaysflagshipBarclays is a featured employer partner that has hired COOP alumni and hosts Talent Showcase events. They provide support through panels, mock interviews, workshops, and open houses.
- MetacoreMeta is an employer partner providing volunteer support and hiring COOP alumni.
- TikTokcoreTikTok is an employer partner that has hired COOP alumni and participates in COOP recruiting events.
- VisacoreVisa is an employer partner providing volunteer support for panels and workshops.
- SalesforcecoreSalesforce is an employer partner that has hired COOP alumni.
- AdyencoreAdyen is an employer partner providing volunteer support through panels and workshops.
- Blackstone Career PathwayscoreBlackstone Career Pathways is an employer partner providing volunteer support.
- Bottom LinecoreBottom Line is a community partner helping refer applicants to the COOP program.
- Noble SchoolscoreNoble Schools is a community partner that refers applicants to the COOP program.
- Oakland PromisecoreOakland Promise is a community partner that refers applicants to the COOP program.
- IPG MediabrandscoreIPG Mediabrands is a $10,000-$24,999 funder and employer partner providing volunteer support.
- HavascoreHavas is an $10,000-$24,999 funder and employer partner providing volunteer support.
- VaynerMediacoreVaynerMedia is a $10,000-$24,999 funder and employer partner that has hired COOP alumni.
- KeplercoreKepler is a $10,000-$24,999 funder providing training opportunities for COOP fellows.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Coop Career competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Year Up: Year Up is a workforce development nonprofit providing intensive career training and corporate internships to young adults from low-income communities, with a similar tuition-free, employer-partnered model and similar target demographics.
- Per Scholas: Per Scholas provides tuition-free technology training and career development to adults from low-income or underemployed backgrounds, with strong employer partnerships and multi-city presence—directly comparable to COOP's tech-adjacent Data Analytics track.
- The Knowledge House: The Knowledge House is a NYC-based nonprofit providing free tech training (data analytics, web development, cybersecurity) and career support to young adults from low-income communities, closely mirroring COOP's urban tech-skills training and job placement mission.
- Bottom Line: Bottom Line is a nonprofit that supports first-generation-to-college students from low-income backgrounds through degree completion and career access, and is already a documented community partner of COOP Careers.
- NPower: NPower offers free technology training and job placement for veterans and young adults from underserved communities, overlapping with COOP's Data Analytics curriculum, employer pipeline, and low-income / first-career target population.
- Pursuit: Pursuit (formerly Opportunity@Work) is a NYC-based nonprofit providing long-term software engineering training and career support to low-income adults, comparable in cohort-based training intensity and employer-partner placement focus.
Emerging players
- Resilient Coders: Resilient Coders provides free web development bootcamp training for opportunity youth in Boston, with employer partnerships for entry-level tech roles—similar to COOP's tuition-free, employer-mediated model but in a more focused software engineering niche.
- Break Through Tech: Break Through Tech, hosted by Cornell Tech, runs skills-based programs and industry-sponsored projects to launch women and underrepresented students into tech careers, overlapping with COOP's employer-mediated tech talent pipeline.
- Braven: Braven is a career-accelerator nonprofit for first-generation and students from under-resourced backgrounds that combines an online course with coaching and employer matching—highly comparable to COOP's career-readiness and employer placement model.
Broad incumbents
- Generation USA: Generation is a global nonprofit providing free, employer-aligned training and job placement across multiple professions (tech, healthcare, finance), with similar mission of moving underemployed adults into careers and overlapping with COOP's Financial Services and Data Analytics tracks.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Coop Career social profiles
Digital presenceCoop Career financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Coop Career leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles12 records
Coop Career funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Coop Career M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Coop Career
What does Coop Career do?
COOP Careers delivers a tuition-free, 16-week career accelerating fellowship for first-generation and low-income college graduates, comprising 200 hours of hybrid training across three tracks: Data Analytics, Digital Marketing, and Financial Services. The program is led by alumni near-peer coaches (captains) in cohorts of 16-20 fellows, includes industry-recognized certifications and a capstone project, and continues with alumni services such as job board access, employer referrals, and AI-powered career tools. The fellowship is delivered at no cost to participants and is funded by philanthropic donations, foundation grants, and corporate partnerships.
Is Coop Career a public or private company?
Coop Career is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Coop Career founded?
Coop Career was founded in 2014. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Coop Career based?
Coop Career is headquartered in New City, United States, in the North America region.
How does Coop Career make money?
One revenue line is on record: donations and Grants.
Who are Coop Career's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Year Up, Per Scholas, The Knowledge House, Bottom Line, NPower and Pursuit. Emerging players are Resilient Coders, Break Through Tech and Braven. Generation USA is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Coop Career have an API?
No public API is recorded for Coop Career.
What industry is Coop Career in?
Coop Career's product category is Workforce Development Fellowship / Career Training Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAMAKAA, Mentorship & Coaching (Career, Academic, Industry-Specific), with a secondary code of EDAMAKAG, Career Readiness & Employability Skills (Resume, Interview, Networking). Its NAICS code is 611430 and its SIC code is 8200.