What VirtualJobShadow does

VirtualJobShadow is a cloud-based SaaS career exploration and college/career readiness platform that has operated since 2012 and now functions as a wholly owned subsidiary within the Pathful Inc. corporate structure. The platform delivers 1,000+ exclusively-produced career exploration videos, O*NET-based career and interest assessments, a custom lesson builder (FlexLessons), and integrated college and job search tools (powered by Indeed.com, IPEDS, Peterson's, and Bureau of Labor Statistics data) to four primary customer segments: K-5 elementary schools (via Pathful Junior), middle and high schools, higher education institutions, and WIOA-funded workforce agencies and Departments of Labor. The technology stack includes Wistia-hosted video delivery, O*NET-based assessment engines, SSO support, and compliance-aligned security infrastructure (TLS encryption, secure cloud environments) meeting COPPA, FERPA, California AB 1584, SB 1177, AB 1442, and CCPA requirements.

The company operates on a B2B site license subscription model with quote-based pricing calibrated to institution type, enrollment size, and scope (individual schools, districts, state agencies, consortia). Billing is structured as annual or multi-year contracts with invoice terms. Distribution is exclusively B2B, using a combination of enterprise field sales for state agencies and large districts, inside sales for mid-market schools and colleges, and channel partnerships through WIOA-funded workforce agencies and career centers. Geographic scope is single-country domestic (United States), with all services delivered from U.S.-based infrastructure.

In August 2022, Virtual Job Shadow merged with Nepris to form Pathful Inc., backed by private equity firm PSG, creating a comprehensive college and career readiness ecosystem. Under Pathful, the platform has expanded to include Pathful Explore, Pathful CRD, Course Planner, and acquired Jobready360 (CTE and WBL program management) in 2025. Strategic content integrations include partnerships with Esri (ArcGIS geographic career mapping), Wistia (video hosting), and regional consortia in Oregon, Orange County, and North Carolina. The company is privately held with no public listing.

Name

VirtualJobShadow

Legal name

Strivven Media LLC

Website

https://virtualjobshadow.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

VirtualJobShadow is a cloud-based career exploration SaaS platform serving K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and workforce agencies through exclusive video content, O*NET assessments, and college/job search tools, now operating within Pathful Inc.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Career Exploration and College Readiness Software (EdTech)

NAICS

Software Publishers (5132), Broadcasting and Content Providers (516)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Virtual CTE & Career Pathways Programs (K–12) (EDAJADAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Digital Outplacement Platforms & Virtual Career Transition (BPACAOAL), Simulation-Based Learning & Virtual Labs (EDAGAEAG)

Keywords

• Career exploration software
• Virtual job shadowing
• College readiness platform
• CTE program management
• Workforce development tools

Headquarters

HQ city

Asheville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Site License Subscriptions: VirtualJobShadow.com operates on a site license subscription model where schools, districts, colleges, and workforce agencies purchase licenses based on institution type and number of enrolled students or members. Subscriptions are typically annual or multi-year contracts with renewal terms outlined in purchase orders.
2. Enterprise License Sales: Larger organizations such as state-wide agencies, school districts, or consortia can purchase enterprise-level licenses. Pricing is quote-based and determined by organizational scope and user count.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

VirtualJobShadow.com is a cloud-based career exploration and college readiness platform sold to schools, districts, colleges, and workforce agencies. It delivers an exclusive library of more than 1,000 professionally-produced job-shadowing videos, O*NET-aligned career assessments, a FlexLessons lesson builder, and integrated college and job search tools. The platform is licensed per organization rather than per individual user, with quote-based pricing scaled to enrolled student or member counts.

Product overview

VirtualJobShadow operates as part of Pathful Inc., a comprehensive college and career readiness ecosystem offering a platform-plus-products architecture. The core offerings include VirtualJobShadow.com (legacy) and Pathful Explore/Pathful CRD (current), serving K-16 education and workforce development through tools for career exploration, virtual job shadowing, assessments, and planning. Supporting products include Pathful Junior (K-5), Course Planner (postsecondary planning), Jobready360/JobreadyCTE/JobreadyWBL (CTE and WBL program management and compliance). The platform provides over 1,000 exclusive video content pieces, integrated college and job search tools, career assessments (O*Net-based), FlexLessons lesson builder, and administrative tracking capabilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• VJS Junior: Interactive, multimedia career education platform for elementary students (K-5) covering 17 Career Clusters
• Jobready360
• JobreadyCTE
• JobreadyWBL
• Pathful Connect
• FlexLessons
• My Plan

Products and services

• VirtualJobShadow.com Platform Site-licensed cloud SaaS platform delivering exclusive job-shadowing videos, career assessments, FlexLessons lesson builder, college/job search, and admin tracking to schools, districts, colleges, and workforce agencies.
• Pathful Explore Comprehensive career exploration and readiness platform for K-16 students and adult learners, providing tools for career discovery, industry engagement, and workforce preparation.
• Pathful Junior (formerly VJS Junior) Interactive multimedia career education platform for elementary students (K-5) covering 17 Career Clusters to encourage personal and academic growth.
• Pathful CRD (Career Readiness & Development) Comprehensive Career Readiness & Development platform providing traditional career readiness and work-based learning requirements along with authentic experiences, progressive skill development, and professional connections.
• Course Planner Postsecondary planning and school profile tool helping students align majors with desired career pursuits and navigate college selection.
• Jobready360 CTE and WBL program management and compliance platform acquired by Pathful to manage career and technical education and work-based learning programs.
• JobreadyCTE Career and Technical Education program management solution for compliance and program administration.
• JobreadyWBL Work-Based Learning program management and compliance solution for workforce development initiatives.

Quantifiable outcome

• Students can explore careers across 17 Career Clusters through video content and assessments
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered strategic, regional and core.

• EsristrategicTechnology or IntegrationLongstanding partnership bringing ArcGIS technology to career exploration. Combines powerful geographic information system technology with career exploration content to help students understand geographic realities of career opportunities.
• OC PathwaysregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership connecting career exploration and virtual job shadowing with OC Pathways' regional workforce development initiatives in Orange County, California.
• NC Area Health Education CenterregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerMulti-institutional, multidisciplinary partnership designed to meet statewide healthcare workforce needs by boosting healthcare career awareness through career exploration tools.
• Oregon Education ConsortiumregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorStatewide consortium adoption of VirtualJobShadow.com for career exploration and career planning initiatives across Oregon educational institutions.
• Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS)coreTechnology or IntegrationNational database providing college information including classification of instructional programs, used for college search and profile features on the platform.
• Peterson'scoreTechnology or IntegrationData provider for undergraduate, financial aid, and private aid datasets integrated into the college search functionality.
• Bureau of Labor StatisticscoreTechnology or IntegrationData source for occupational employment statistics, employment projections, and Occupational Outlook Handbook content powering career profiles and labor market information.
• Indeed.comcoreTechnology or IntegrationIntegrated job and internship search engine powering the job search functionality on VirtualJobShadow.com, allowing students to search across all industries.
• WistiacoreTechnology or IntegrationVideo streaming platform hosting VirtualJobShadow.com's exclusive video content. Requires firewall access alongside main website domain.
• U.S. Department of LaborcoreTechnology or IntegrationSource for Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational employment statistics, Employment Projections Program, and Occupational Outlook Handbook data.
• O*NET (Occupational Information Network)coreTechnology or IntegrationO*NET Interest Profiler and Work Importance Locator assessments integrated into the platform for career matching based on Holland RIASEC Interest Structure.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Xello: Xello (formerly Career Cruising) is a leading K-12 college and career readiness platform serving school districts globally. It directly competes with VirtualJobShadow in career exploration, assessments, and planning tools for K-12 students.
• Naviance (PowerSchool): Naviance is the dominant college and career readiness platform used by US high schools, now owned by PowerSchool. It directly competes with VirtualJobShadow's college and career planning features for the same K-12 district buyer.
• YouScience: YouScience is a career discovery platform using aptitude-based assessments for students. It is a direct competitor in the career exploration and aptitude assessment category targeting K-12 and higher education.
• Kuder: Kuder provides career planning and workforce development solutions including career assessments, education planning, and job search tools. It competes directly with VirtualJobShadow in K-12 career exploration and workforce agency verticals.
• MajorClarity: MajorClarity is a college, career, and life readiness platform for K-12 schools offering assessments, career exploration, and work-based learning tools. It directly overlaps with VirtualJobShadow's career exploration and lesson planning features.
• Nepris (now Pathful): Nepris was a direct competitor that merged with VirtualJobShadow to form Pathful Inc. in 2022. Both companies served the same K-16 career readiness market with virtual industry engagement and career exploration tools.

Emerging players

• Parchment (Instructure): Parchment provides credential management and learner records within Instructure's Canvas ecosystem. It overlaps with VirtualJobShadow's college application and transcript features as part of the broader college/career readiness workflow.
• Workforceboard (Geographic Solutions): Geographic Solutions provides workforce development systems including the America's Job Link Alliance platform used by WIOA-funded agencies. It overlaps with VirtualJobShadow's workforce agency vertical for career exploration and case management.
• RoadTrip Nation: RoadTrip Nation produces video content about careers and career pathways, similar to VirtualJobShadow's exclusive video library. It serves schools and workforce programs with career exploration content, partially overlapping with VirtualJobShadow's video-centric approach.

Others

• Indeed for Education: Indeed is both a data integration partner (job search functionality) and a potential adjacent competitor in the career exploration space through employer connections and labor market data. As a major job platform, it provides contextual comparability for VirtualJobShadow's job search features.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/virtualjobshado
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/virtualjobshadow-com

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about VirtualJobShadow