Today, Braven announced that its largest class of college graduates are outpacing national quality job attainment rates by 22 percentage points. In 2019, nearly 340 Braven Fellows graduated from college, more than doubling the number of Braven college graduates in the labor market, and 71% of this most recent class of Braven graduates have landed a strong job or enrolled in a graduate program, compared to 49% of Black and Latinx students from public universities nationally.
This announcement comes as part of Braven’s 2020 Jobs Report, released today. The report also announces that, in their first jobs out of college, 49% are already outearning their parents’ combined income from when they were growing up. Americans, on the whole, have only a 50-50 chance of outearning their parents by age 30.
“We are so proud of this class of Fellows,” said Braven Founder and CEO Aimée Eubanks Davis. “Braven Fellows are demonstrating what is possible when they get access to the skills, networks, experiences and confidence necessary to launch a strong career. We’re dedicated to continuing and scaling this work, in partnership with our university and employer partners, to ensure more promising young people are maximizing their potential.”
Braven Fellows undergo a two-part experience that involves online learning modules and weekly in-person Learning Labs with a Leadership Coach and peer cohort. Braven primarily targets first-generation college students, students receiving Pell grants, and other underrepresented college students to help them build the skills and social capital they will need to launch successfully into the modern economy.
“Braven helped me step outside of my comfort zone and exposed me to a world of opportunities!” said Crystal Cardenas, San José State University graduate. “I learned how to communicate professionally, be a partner to my teammates, and continue to advocate for other first-generation college students like myself.”
According to Anthony Lising Antonio, Associate Director of Stanford’s Institute for Higher Education Research, “Students emerge from the program with confidence and optimism in beginning their post-college careers, citing specific skills they developed in the program as valuable assets they only developed through Braven--teamwork, networking, and communication.”
In partnership with university and employer partners, Braven has served more than 1,800 Fellows to date. By the 2021-2022 school year, Braven will work with approximately 2,000 new Fellows annually and have 2,000 graduates in the workforce.
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About Braven
Founded in 2013, Braven empowers promising, underrepresented young people—first-generation college students, students from low-income backgrounds, and students of color—with the skills, confidence, experiences, and networks necessary to transition from college to strong first jobs. Braven is embedded within large public universities and partners with employers to build cutting-edge career education into the undergraduate experience for low-income and first-generation college goers and provides students, who often feel disconnected from campus, with a network of supporters and sense of belonging. Braven Fellows are persisting in college and achieving exciting levels of internship and job attainment.
For more information about Braven, visit bebraven.org. Stay connected with Braven on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.