# Podium Education

> Podium Education is an Austin-based edtech company that partners with colleges and universities to close the gap between a degree and a first job. Its flagship product, the Global Career Accelerator, is a for-credit, fully online program in which undergraduates of any major work on real projects for companies like Intel, L'Oreal, OpenAI and the GRAMMYs, build in-demand skills in data, marketing and coding, and collaborate with peers from dozens of countries. After acquiring the early-career talent platform Untapped in 2024, Podium now also connects its students directly to employers, turning coursework into a hiring pipeline.

- **Founded:** 2019
- **Headquarters:** Austin, Texas, United States
- **Founders:** Christopher Parrish (Co-Founder & President), Alex Ricken (Co-Founder & Chief Growth Officer)
- **Team size:** ~180 employees
- **Products:** The Global Career Accelerator, Untapped (early-career talent network), Career Discovery Experience
- **Notable:** Grew to 50+ university partners across the US since founding in 2019, Raised a $20M Series B in 2022 led by impact and education-focused investors, Acquired Untapped in 2024, connecting 1M+ students to employer hiring pipelines

## Products & services

- **The Global Career Accelerator** — A for-credit, fully online program open to students of all majors. Participants build in-demand skills in data analytics, digital marketing, and coding by working on real projects for companies like Intel, L'Oreal, OpenAI, Publicis Sapient and the GRAMMYs, while collaborating with peers from dozens of countries and earning industry-recognized certifications.
- **Untapped (early-career talent network)** — An early-career talent platform acquired in 2024 that connects students from Podium's partner universities directly with recruiters and employers for internships and jobs.
- **Career Discovery Experience** — A career-exploration program announced for launch in Spring 2026, extending Podium's model earlier into the student journey.

## Achievements

- Grew to 50+ university partners across the US since founding in 2019
- Raised a $20M Series B in 2022 led by impact and education-focused investors
- Acquired Untapped in 2024, connecting 1M+ students to employer hiring pipelines
- Built real-project partnerships with brands including Intel, L'Oreal, OpenAI and the GRAMMYs
- Created a global student community collaborating across dozens of countries

## Latest updates

- **2024-02** — Podium Education acquired Untapped, the early-career talent platform, to close the college-to-career gap and connect 1M+ students with employers.
- **2024-03** — Shenandoah University and University of Utah among schools launching the Global Career Accelerator for undergraduates.
- **2026-01** — Announced plans to launch a Career Discovery Experience in Spring 2026.

## Links

- Website: https://podiumeducation.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/podiumeducation
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/Podium-Education-1486136414979583/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/podium-education
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-11