About Penn Foster
Penn Foster is an Education company based in Scranton (United States) founded in 1890 by Thomas J Foster, and was acquired by Bain Capital in April 2018. Online education programs are provided by Penn Foster. It operates on a EduTech and Subscription Services model. Penn Foster has completed 2 acquisitions, including Ashworth College and CareerExplorer. Its website pennfoster.edu draws about 2.5 million monthly visits. Penn Foster offers products and services including High School Diploma, Veterinary Technician Associate Degree, and Medical Billing and Coding Career Diploma. Its focus areas include Online Education and Distance Learning. Its legal entity is PENN FOSTER, INC. Its competitors include DeVry, Altius Education and Foundry College; 2 of its 3 listed competitors have raised funding.
Company details
Online education and career training are offered by Penn Foster across various sectors including healthcare, skilled trades, and veterinary services. High school diplomas, career diplomas, and associate degrees are delivered through accredited, self-paced programs. Solutions are designed to help learners achieve career goals with flexible learning options. In-demand skills are taught for industries such as IT, business, and design. Programs are accessible 247 via multiple devices to suit individual schedules.
- Headquarters Scranton, United States
- Founders Thomas J Foster
- Stage Acquired
- SectorsEducation
- Website category Science and Education · Universities and Colleges
- Email••••••••
- Phone•••• ••••
- Website pennfoster.edu
- Social LinkedIn X Facebook Instagram YouTube
- Acquired by Bain Capital (Apr 2018)
- Legal Name Penn Foster, Inc.
- InvestorsMacquarie Group
& 10 more
- Investments & AcquisitionsAshworth College
& 1 more
- Acquired by
Products & Services of Penn Foster
Penn Foster offers a comprehensive portfolio of products and services, including High School Diploma, Veterinary Technician Associate Degree, and Medical Billing and Coding Career Diploma.
Accredited high school diploma is offered online.
Online vet tech training is provided accredited.
Online training for medical billing is delivered.
Apps and channels of Penn Foster
its YouTube channel Penn Foster has 23.3K subscribers and 30 videos.
Videos from Penn Foster
The most watched videos on Penn Foster's YouTube channel, Penn Foster (23.3K subscribers). Click a video to play it here.
More on Penn Foster.
Funding Insights of Penn Foster
- Total Rounds 1
- Investors Count 5
All 1 funding rounds of Penn Foster with amounts and investors; the two latest post-money valuations are shown, the rest are part of the premium plan.
| Date | Amount | Transaction Name | Valuation | Lead Investors | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2021 | Unspecified | – | BayPine, Two Sigma Impact | – |
11 investors in total: 11 institutional.
Investors in Penn Foster
Penn Foster has secured backing from 11 investors, including venture fund and institutional investors. Prominent investors backing the company include Macquarie Group, Bain Capital and Princeton Review.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
BayPine is focused on private equity and digital transformation. | baypine.com | Boston, United States | ||
Diversified alternative assets are managed through investment strategies. | 1986 | bcpartners.com | London, United Kingdom | |
US private equity investments are managed by FS Investments. | fsinvestments.com | Philadelphia, United States | ||
Everberg Capital Partners is focused on private capital investments. | 2021 | everbergcapital.com | New York, United States | |
Debt and equity investments are pursued across multiple sectors. | 1984 | baincapital.com | Boston, United States | |
Venture capital firm focused on tech sectors | zomalab.com | Denver, United States | ||
A private investment firm focused on essential industries is operated. | 2013 | vistria.com | Chicago, United States | |
Provides comprehensive workforce management services for organizations. | 2019 | twosigmaimpact.com | New York, United States | |
A global financial services organization with Australian heritage is operated. | 1969 | macquarie.com | Sydney, Australia | |
Diversified investment management in multi-asset and fixed income is conducted. | 1996 | pinebridge.com | New York, United States |
Investor details for Penn Foster
The complete investor list, round-by-round participation and investor portfolios require an active premium plan.
- Complete investor list
- Round participation
- Investor portfolios
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People of Penn Foster
2 people are tracked at Penn Foster (2 in leadership).
| Name | Role | Group |
|---|---|---|
Thomas J Foster | Founder | Leadership |
Frank Britt | CEO | Leadership |
Complete people profiles for Penn Foster
Full employee and board profiles, team structure, tenure and professional contact details require an active premium plan.
- Full employee list
- Team structure
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- Professional contacts
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Investments & Acquisitions by Penn Foster
Penn Foster has strategically engaged in corporate development activities, having acquired 2 companies. Notable acquisitions include Ashworth College and CareerExplorer.
| Company Name | Description | Domain | Location | Founded | Acquired | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Web-based career guidance is offered via psychometric tests for professionals. | careerexplorer.com | Vancouver, Canada | 2012 | Mar 2021 | •••• | |
Online college degrees and high school diplomas are provided. | ashworthcollege.edu | Norcross, United States | 1987 | Feb 2019 | •••• |
Complete acquisition details for Penn Foster
Acquired stakes, deal sources and the complete acquisition history require an active premium plan.
- Acquired stakes
- Deal sources
- Complete history
- Exports
Verified entity values are shown only after access is granted.
Timeline of Penn Foster
7 dated milestones of Penn Foster across 131 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded Penn Foster is founded.
- Exit Acquired by Princeton Review.
- Exit Acquired by Vistria.
- Exit Acquired by Bain Capital.
- Acquisition Acquires Ashworth College.
- Funding First funding round.
- Acquisition Acquires CareerExplorer.
Competitors of Penn Foster
Penn Foster has 3 listed competitors in our database, 2 of them funded. They include DeVry, Altius Education and Foundry College.
| Company Name | Domain | Founded | HQ Location | Total funding | Employees | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| devry.edu | 2009 | Downers Grove, United States | Undergraduate and graduate degrees are provided online by DeVry. | |||
| altiused.com | 2007 | San Francisco, United States | $26.6M | 142 | Associate degrees are offered online for transfer to four-year universities. | |
| foundrycollege.org | 2018 | San Francisco, United States | $1M | Online associate degrees are provided for working adults. |
Detailed competitors of Penn Foster
The full competitor set, operating metrics and side-by-side benchmarks require an active premium plan.
- Full competitor set
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Web traffic of Penn Foster
The website of Penn Foster (pennfoster.edu) receives about 2.5M visits a month and ranks #20,588 among all websites worldwide, #1,127 in Universities and Colleges.
- Monthly visits2.5M
▲ 16.3% vs previous month
- Unique visitors587.5K
per month
- Global rank#20,588
among all websites
- Category rank#1,127
Science and Education · Universities and Colleges
- Bounce rate29%
- Pages per visit6.2
- Average visit3 min 52 sec
- DevicesDesktop 37% · Mobile 63%
Websites whose visitors overlap most with Penn Foster. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
scitraining.com | scitraining.com | 100% | #236,492 | – | |
| simpson.edu | 98% | 46.3K | #486,599 | View details | |
| parchment.com | 96% | 5.3M | #10,929 | View details | |
| scranton.edu | 94% | 197K | #135,571 | View details | |
| uiu.edu | 93% | 55.9K | #484,702 | View details | |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
All 40 similar websites and full traffic analytics for Penn Foster
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- 40 similar websites
- Audience overlap
- Engagement analytics
- Traffic by brand
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Top companies in Education Technology Platforms
3 companies that operate in the same segment as Penn Foster (Education Technology Platforms) in United States, ranked by their profile score on The Company Check.
| Company | Description | Founded | Location | Total funding | Revenue | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Developer of a platform providing gamified language learning through interactive exercises | 2011 | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States | USD 183.3 M | USD 748.02 M | 900 | |
Cloud-based software for K-12 education is provided. | 1997 | Folsom, California, United States | USD 32 M | USD 47.59 M | 1,308 | |
Online platform for preschool management and parent updates is offered. | 2014 | San Francisco, California, United States | USD 88.8 M |
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Related news about Penn Foster
Complete news archive for Penn Foster
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Frequently Asked Questions about Penn Foster
Penn Foster was founded in 1890 and raised its 1st funding round 131 years after it was founded.
Penn Foster is headquartered in Scranton, United States. It is registered at Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States.
Online education and career training are offered by Penn Foster across various sectors including healthcare, skilled trades, and veterinary services. High school diplomas, career diplomas, and associate degrees are delivered through accredited, self-paced programs. Solutions are designed to help learners achieve career goals with flexible learning options. In-demand skills are taught for industries such as IT, business, and design. Programs are accessible 247 via multiple devices to suit individual schedules.
Penn Foster's top competitors include DeVry, Foundry College and Altius Education.
Penn Foster offers High School Diploma, Veterinary Technician Associate Degree, and Medical Billing and Coding Career Diploma.
Penn Foster has made 2 acquisitions, including Ashworth College, and CareerExplorer.
Penn Foster has 11 investors. Key investors include Macquarie Group, Bain Capital, Princeton Review, PineBridge Investments, and BC Partners.
Penn Foster operates through Penn Foster, Inc..
Yes. Penn Foster was acquired by Bain Capital in April 2018.
The website of Penn Foster receives about 2.5 million visits a month and ranks #20,588 among all websites worldwide.