How Cohorts started
Cohorts started with Maleah's search for a university.
In August 2024, she was comparing schools and programs and kept hitting the same wall. Websites and brochures told her what each program offered, but not what it was actually like. So she started asking friends to connect her with students they knew who were already in the programs she was considering. One introduction at a time, through friends of friends. It worked, but it was slow.
Then she said it out loud: wouldn't this be a great idea for an app?
That conversation became Cohorts: one place where students can find the programs they are considering and talk to the students already in them, without needing to know someone who knows someone. Cohorts Inc. was incorporated in Ontario in April 2025, and the app is now live on iOS and Android.
Who we are
Maleah Osypchuck
Co-Founder and Head of Student Experience
The idea was hers. Now in second year Economics at Queen's University, she brings the student voice to everything we make.
Mariah Osypchuck
Co-Founder and Head of Marketing
Leads marketing and how Cohorts shows up for students and parents.
Mike Osypchuck
Co-Founder and CEO
Leads strategy and product, and builds this website himself.
Kai Osypchuck
Student Advisor
In grade 12 and choosing programs now, so he tests every feature as the student it is built for.
What we believe
Belonging is not earned. Reading counts. Pausing is allowed. Quiet participation is valid. You should not have to perform to belong.
Context beats content. More information does not reduce anxiety. Better timing does. We try to show what matters right now, not everything at once.
Student first, always. Every decision is shaped by students. Not advertisers, not algorithms, not engagement targets.
Calm by design. Cohorts is meant to be opened with intention, and closed without guilt.
What we do not build
- Infinite scroll feeds
- Streaks, leaderboards, or follower counts
- Public comparison metrics
- Chatbot first experiences
- Guilt driven notifications or forced productivity
Every "no" protects trust.
Independent by design
Cohorts is not run by, paid by, or reporting to any school, college, or university. Students only share what a program is really like when they know the school is not reading.
Where we are today
- Live on iOS and Android, free to download and free to use.
- More than 21,000 programs across more than 350 Canadian colleges and universities.
- School and program communities, where students connect and message each other.
- Coming soon: peer mentorship. We are recruiting founding mentors now.
- Building with student councils. We are inviting founding councils to shape what we build.
Contact
Questions, press, or ideas: mike@cohorts.me. Based in Ontario, Canada.