$500
Total certificate cost
Online - self-paced
Learning modality
160 hours to complete
4 courses
Overview
Whether you're new to cooperatives, exploring co-ops as a career path, or already working in a cooperative business and ready to grow, this professional certificate is designed to help you build practical knowledge and confidence. Built by ASU and NCBA CLUSA, the national association for America's cooperative businesses, each course part of this certificate draws on real industry perspectives. Through Voices from the Field, you'll hear directly from cooperative leaders and innovators about how the model works in practice. Explore what makes cooperatives different member ownership, democratic governance, and the ways co-ops compete, grow, and strengthen communities.
Build your cooperative business expertise. Start today for as low as $125.
The professional certificate covers the essentials of cooperative identity, governance, economics, law, policy, and sector models, giving learners a practical foundation for understanding, supporting, and leading cooperative businesses. Choose whether to enroll in the professional certificate above or only a few of the four microcredentials in cooperative enterprise. below:
- Cooperative Identity and How Cooperatives Work - $125
- Cooperative Law and Public Policy - $125
- The Economics of Working Together - $125
- Models Across Sectors - $125
Each microcredential is a focused, standalone course you can put to work right away. Take one to build a specific skill, or complete all four to earn the Foundations of Cooperative Enterprise professional certificate.
Want to take your learning further?
Completing all four microcredentials also unlocks the Capstone, a live, faculty-led experience where you'll tackle real cooperative challenges alongside experts and peers and earn a second credential. Click the link below to learn more about the Capstone:
Your cooperative business learning path visualized
See how the four microcredentials, the certificate and the capstone connect, and find your starting point.
Key Benefits:
- Progress through four focused microcredentials that build toward a comprehensive capstone
- Understand cooperative ownership, governance, and organizational structures
- Differentiate cooperatives from investor-owned business models
- Analyze when cooperative models are effective across sectors
- Apply cooperative principles in U.S. and global contexts
- Build the knowledge to contribute within cooperative enterprises
No prerequisites. No required order. No big commitment to get started.
Courses within certificate
Cooperatives are a distinct business model defined by shared ownership and democratic governance.
This microcredential course, co-developed with NCBA CLUSA, introduces the core elements of cooperative identity and explains how cooperatives operate, scale, and differ from investor-owned firms in both U.S. and global contexts.
Key Benefits
- Understand cooperative structure, ownership, and governance fundamentals
- Differentiate cooperatives from investor-owned business models
- Learn how democratic governance functions in practice
- Explore cooperative models across industries and global markets
- Build a foundation for advanced cooperative study
What’s Included
- Structured modules covering cooperative identity, governance, and organizational models
- Real-world examples of cooperatives across U.S. and international sectors
- Comparative insights between cooperative and investor-owned firms
- Practical frameworks for understanding federated and centralized systems
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FAQs
Program support
Have additional questions?
Please reach out directly to wpcareyexeced@asu.edu for all course content related questions.
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