HigherEd+

What HigherEd+ does

HigherEd+ is the doing-business-as name of Publication Academy, Inc., a private Virginia-incorporated corporation founded in 2021 and headquartered in Great Falls, VA with a 7-person team. The company operates a video-based professional development platform designed exclusively for the higher education and foundation sectors, offering institutional subscribers unlimited access to 375+ hours of high-definition video content (200+ courses) across 10+ languages, supplemented by 36 digital badge microcredentials, fully-managed virtual Communities of Practice, and AI-powered learning-pathway tools (GenHE AI Course Recommender, Auto-Map Syllabi/IDP/PIP mapping). Content is white-labelable and can be integrated into credit-bearing academic courses or mapped to Individual Development Plans and Performance Improvement Plans.

The platform is sold on a B2B enterprise SaaS model via direct institutional sales (Calendly-driven demo motion) and strategic channel partnerships with the Council on Undergraduate Research, OneHE, the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies, and UConnect. Pricing is quote-based, annual, and not publicly disclosed. The customer base spans roughly 20 named institutional partners across nine countries, including US universities (Virginia Tech, University of Kansas, George Mason, NC State, UVA, Morgan State, Creighton), foundations (Templeton World Charity Foundation, The Global Good Fund), state and federal government buyers (State of North Carolina, Kanton Zurich), and international institutions (Molde University College Norway, University of Basel, American University Sharjah). Cumulative reach is reported at 50,000+ learners.

The platform is compliant with HECVAT, VPAT, WCAG 2.2, SOC 2 Type 2, and FERPA — a compliance footprint that functions as a procurement gate for higher-ed vendor risk assessments. The company is founder-owned and bootstrapped with no disclosed external funding rounds and is led by Founder & Executive Director Jay Phoenix Singh, PhD, supported by a Chief Operating Officer, a Director of Strategic Partnerships, and an AI Solutions Lead.

Name

HigherEd+

Legal name

Publication Academy, Inc.

Website

https://higheredplus.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

HigherEd+ (DBA of Publication Academy, Inc.) is a B2B SaaS platform delivering video-based professional development, digital badges, and AI-powered learning tools to universities, foundations, and government agencies, serving 50,000+ academic learners globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education Professional Development Software

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Online Learning Content & Course Publishing Platforms (BPAMAJAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Higher Education Course Design & Online Program Development (EDAGAKAB), Certification & Credentialed Creator Programs (MPACALAI), Corporate/L&D Course Licensing from Creators (B2B Upskilling) (MPACALAH)

Keywords

• Higher education training
• Faculty development platform
• Academic professional development
• Digital badge microcredentials
• Scholarly publishing education

Headquarters

HQ city

Great Falls

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Institutional Subscription (Unlimited Access): Provides institutional partners unlimited access to the full course library, facilitator materials, digital badges, and virtual Communities of Practice. B2B model where universities and foundations purchase enterprise-wide licenses.
2. White-Label Licensing: White-labeled solutions for higher education institutions and foundations to customize the platform with their branding and integrate into credit-bearing courses.
3. Digital Badge Programs: Individual and institutional access to digital badge microcredentials across 36 programs covering various academic and professional development topics.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

HigherEd+ operates a white-labeled online professional development platform for higher education institutions and foundations, providing unlimited access to 200+ courses (375+ hours of HD video content in 10+ languages) and 36 digital badge microcredentials covering academic career stages from undergraduate to faculty. The platform includes an AI-powered course recommender (GenHE) and AI tools that auto-map syllabi, Individual Development Plans (IDPs), and Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs) to learning pathways. Institutional partners can white-label the content, integrate it into credit-bearing courses, and access fully-managed virtual Communities of Practice.

Product overview

HigherEd+ (DBA of Publication Academy, Inc.) operates as a unified professional development platform designed by academics for academics, offering white-labeled online solutions for higher education and foundation professional development. The platform serves as the leading provider of career advancement programs across academic stages, proudly serving 50,000+ learners. The core offering is the Professional Development Suite, supplemented by specialized modules including Auto-Map Your Syllabi, Communities of Practice, Digital Courseware, WriteSTREAK Writing Productivity Platform, AI Training Academy, Graduate Career Readiness Center, Mid-Career Faculty IGNITE Program, Faculty Learning Communities, CUR Microcredential Bundles, GenHE AI Course Recommender Tool, Mock Interview Library, ChatGPT Prompt Library for Researchers, and Mock Industry Interview Studio. The platform provides 375+ hours of high-definition video content in 10+ languages, 200+ career-enhancing courses, and 36 digital badge programs spanning AI fundamentals, college teaching with AI, scholarly publishing, grant writing, tenure track success, graduate school applications, doctoral dissertation support, academic leadership, and career transitions from academia to industry. Content can be white-labeled, integrated into credit-bearing courses, or mapped to Individual Development Plans (IDPs) and Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs) for personalized learning pathways.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Professional Development Suite (Institutional Unlimited Access) White-labeled, institution-wide professional development subscription providing unlimited access to 200+ courses, 375+ hours of HD video modules, live facilitator materials, 36 digital badge microcredentials, and virtual Communities of Practice for academic institutions, foundations, and government education agencies.
• AI Training Academy Standalone AI-focused training program covering Fundamentals of AI, College Teaching with AI, and Scholarly Publishing with AI, designed for academic faculty, graduate students, and institutions seeking structured AI upskilling.
• WriteSTREAK Writing Productivity Platform Standalone writing productivity platform designed to help academics develop consistent writing habits, track writing streaks, and improve scholarly output and publication productivity.
• Digital Courseware Licensable library of 375+ hours of high-definition video modules in 10+ languages, taught by rigorously vetted experts from leading universities, available for institutional licensing and white-label integration.
• CUR Microcredential Bundles Bundled digital badge microcredentials developed in partnership with the Council on Undergraduate Research, targeted at undergraduate research programs, honors thesis, and senior honors thesis learners.
• Mid-Career Faculty IGNITE Program Specialized professional development program for mid-career faculty designed to reignite academic engagement, address mid-career stagnation, and develop leadership capabilities through structured curriculum and Communities of Practice.
• Graduate Career Readiness Center Standalone career readiness program for graduate students covering career transitions, professional development, mock interviews, and preparation for academic and industry roles.
• GenHE AI Course Recommender Tool Standalone AI-powered course recommendation engine that suggests relevant courses based on learner profiles, career goals, and academic career stage, accessible at higheredplus.ai.
• Center for Faculty Excellence Faculty-specific professional development program providing dedicated learning pathways for first-year faculty, tenure-track success, mid-career development, and late-career legacy planning.
• Communities of Practice / Faculty Learning Communities Fully-managed virtual Communities of Practice and Faculty Learning Communities connecting learners across institutional boundaries for collaborative learning, peer support, and professional networking, including dedicated Leadership Communities of Practice for academic leaders.
• Center for Graduate Student Excellence Graduate-student-specific professional development program covering graduate school applications, master's thesis, doctoral dissertation, post-doc applications, research methods, and statistical analysis.
• Center for Undergraduate Excellence Undergraduate-focused professional development program with research skills, honors thesis support, graduate school preparation, and CUR microcredential bundles.
• Center for Post-Doctoral Excellence Post-doctoral-specific professional development program for post-doctoral applications, career transition support, and research skills development for academic and industry roles.

Quantifiable outcome

• 50,000+ learners served
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers20 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• UConnectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership providing connection to UConnect's network of academic professionals and institutional partners.
• Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership with CUR providing on-demand learning courses for undergraduate research professionals and access to CUR microcredential bundles.
• OneHEcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with OneHE providing educators access to professional development resources and courses through the OneHE platform.
• Canadian Association for Graduate Studies (CAGS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with CAGS serving graduate studies professionals in Canada with professional development resources.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Podia: Creator-led course and membership platform enabling experts to sell courses and digital products; adjacent as enabling infrastructure for the kind of expert-led content model HigherEd+ uses.

Direct peers

• Academic Impressions: Provides online and live professional development explicitly targeted at higher ed administrators, faculty, and academic leaders — the same primary buyer segments as HigherEd+.
• Coursera for Campus: Coursera's institutional arm sells unlimited catalog access and credentials to universities and workforce programs globally, directly competing with HigherEd+'s white-label, unlimited-access institutional subscription model.
• Emeritus: Partners with top universities to deliver online professional development and certificate programs to working professionals and academic-adjacent audiences, mirroring HigherEd+'s institution-branded model.
• edX (2U): University-sourced online courses and microcredentials licensed to institutions and learners; overlaps with HigherEd+'s catalog, badge, and university partnership approach.

Broad incumbents

• Instructure (Canvas): Major higher ed LMS vendor whose platform could embed or bundle PD content and AI tools, positioning it as both a potential integration partner and a competitive threat to HigherEd+'s workflow features.
• Skillsoft: Enterprise learning and talent development platform offering institutional and corporate L&D subscriptions; an incumbent competitor for unlimited-access learning budgets.
• Academic Partnerships: Online program manager helping universities launch and operate online degree and certificate programs, addressing the same institutional buyers with broader program-management services.
• LinkedIn Learning: Large, broad professional learning library with institutional licensing; competes for the same professional development budget that HigherEd+ sells into, though not specialized in academic roles.

Emerging players

• OneHE: Higher ed-focused professional development resource hub for educators; intersects with HigherEd+'s audience and is also a current strategic partner, making it a credible adjacent competitor and channel.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PubAcademy_Org
• YouTubeyoutube.com/navigatingacademia
• Facebookfacebook.com/HigherEdPlus
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/higheredplus
• Instagraminstagram.com/higheredplus
• TikToktiktok.com/@higheredplus

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about HigherEd+