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A cohort works when everyone starts together, moves on the same schedule, and finishes together. Most course tools were built as a self-paced video library, so people running a cohort end up adding a community app, a calendar, and a separate payment page.
What a cohort course needs from its platform
A fixed start date that drives the schedule: when each week of content opens, when you meet, and when the program ends.
Weekly content that unlocks on that schedule, with an order inside the week. Participants learn the material, do the work, then show up to the live session ready.
A live session on the program calendar for that week, not a link that lives only in email.
A place for the cohort to talk between sessions.
Checkout that can close: a cap on how many people can enroll, a deadline, and a code for people who pay early.
Progress you and the participants can both see. Who is keeping up, and who has gone quiet.
A way to run the next cohort without rebuilding the program.
How upcoach runs a cohort-based course
upcoach includes a Cohort-Based Course program type. Program types start you with scaffolding for that format, instead of an empty program. You name it, set the dates, and add your material.
Content on a schedule. Each section can have a release date and time. Before that moment, participants see the section and a countdown, and they cannot open it. When the time arrives, the section unlocks and they get a notification. A section with no release date is available as soon as someone has access. That is how a week opens for the whole cohort on the same day. See Schedule content releases.
Order inside the week. Prerequisites lock a module until the required modules in that same section are finished. You can require the lesson before the assignment, and the assignment before anything you want done ahead of the live session. The release date decides when the week appears. The prerequisites decide the order inside it. See Set up conditions and prerequisites.
Live sessions. The Events app schedules group sessions inside the program. A session can be one event or a recurring series. Put the meeting link on the event. Attendance is recorded, and you can ask for feedback after the session. See Create and manage events.
Talk between sessions. Channels are a discussion space inside the program, so the cohort stays in one place between calls. See Use channels for discussion.
Checkout. An offer is the checkout page for the program. You can add more than one price, such as a one-time payment, a subscription, or an installment plan. You can set an enrollment cap and a deadline. When the cap is reached or the deadline passes, the offer shows as sold out or closed. A coupon is a promo code on that checkout, including an early-bird code with an end date, on the Stripe account you connect. See Create an offer and Create coupons and discounts.
Progress. Space Reports cover one program: section and module progress, which activities people finished, and event attendance. Client Reports cover one participant across the programs you share with them, including activities completed and events attended. See Track participant progress with reports.
A before-and-after, if you want one. Add the same scale or number question at the start of the cohort and again at the end, on a worksheet or a check-in. Check-ins keep each answer and chart the trend, so you and the participant can see what changed.
Run your next cohort without rebuilding it
- Duplicate the program. From Admin Area > Spaces, or from the program name in the sidebar, choose Duplicate. Set the new name and start date. Section release dates shift to match that start date, and you can override any of them before you confirm. Participants, their answers, and their progress stay on the original program. See Duplicate a program.
- Duplicate the offer from Sell. The copy includes the prices, which program it unlocks, and the checkout page, and it is created as a draft. Copied prices start inactive, so turn the price on for this run before you publish. The enrollment deadline is cleared, so you set the window for this run. Point the new offer at the duplicated program before you publish and send the checkout link.
- Open the new program and check the first session time and the section release dates. Replace anything that belonged only to the last cohort, such as the welcome note. Send the new checkout link only after the offer points at this program.
FAQ
What is a cohort-based course?
A cohort-based course is a program with one start, one pace, and one finish. Participants go through the material together. A self-paced course lets each person start when they buy and move on their own. For a longer definition, see Cohort-based courses: definition and benefits.
How long should a cohort be?
As long as the outcome takes, and short enough that people can see the end. Put each week in its own section and give that section a release date.
How many participants should be in a cohort?
You choose the size. Set an enrollment cap on the offer when you want checkout to close. Keep the group small enough that people can speak in the live session. When you need more seats, run the next cohort instead of stretching this one.
Can I run a self-paced course too?
Yes. Self-Paced Course is its own program type, so the always-available version can be a separate program. Inside any program, a section with no release date is available immediately, which is the self-paced behavior for that section.