Pathrise has faced much criticism, particularly on forums like Reddit and Quora where some users have shown concerns about its contract and fees. It’s important to consider these feedback as part of a broader investigation instead of jumping into conclusions.
To give you a gist, here’s an anonymous user on Quora sharing their experience with Pathrise:
Pathrise might not always provide the value and skill development you would expect by the end of the program. Some users even felt that their time and money could have been better spent.
However, personal experiences can vary. While some may be disappointed, others might benefit from Pathrise. To give you a clearer picture, we’ll go through a range of experiences and opinions that can help you decide whether Pathrise could be a good fit for you.
What is Pathrise?
Pathrise is a privately held startup company in San Francisco, California, that focuses on helping job seekers in the tech industry to land their next job and earn industry-leading salaries.
They combine their job search software with online mentorship, resume review, LinkedIn optimisation, and interview preparation. They claim to boost your application responses to 2-4 times, interview scores to 1.5-3 times, and help you get a 10-20% increase in salary negotiation.
Currently, they run a program also called Pathrise. Here, specialists across the fields of career development and talent hiring guide qualified candidates.
Who founded Pathrise?
Pathrise was founded in 2017 by Kevin Wu and Derrick Mar.
Kevin Wu had worked briefly at Yelp and Salesforce. He founded a gaming company before working on Pathrise.
Derrick Mar was a software engineer at Facebook. He left the renowned company to join Kevin as a co-founder. Before his role at Facebook, he founded AI Grading, and worked at Gradescope.
Kevin is currently the CEO of Pathrise, and Derrick is serving as the Chief Technology Officer.
Through Pathrise, they offer 1-on-1 advice and training via mentors to help people land their next job. They claim to improve your odds of getting hired at high-tech companies like Meta, Google and Amazon.
They also have a one-of-a-kind pricing model based on income-sharing agreement (ISA), contracted for 12 months.
They have investment from Y Combinator, a notable investor in the tech industry, and 13 other investment companies.
In total, they've raised $29.2 million in funding, and are said to have a valuation of $11 to $16 million.
Their mission is uplifting job seekers to fulfilling roles, and they have a rating of 4.3 on Trustpilot.
How does Pathrise work?
Pathrise is like a fellowship. Basically, they have a 12 months long career accelerator program, where they help qualified candidates get a job.
During your time as a fellow, they help with resume review, interview preparation, and negotiation skills development.
Based on the agreement a candidate signs with Pathrise, the person pays them between 7 to 14% of their annual salary for the first year when they get a job.
If as a candidate you decide to proceed, on passing their interview, you'll sign a contract that includes an Income Sharing Agreement. Once your fellowship starts, they'll review your resume, guide you in optimizing your LinkedIn profile, and then you'll start applying for 20 to 30 jobs weekly.
Whenever you’re invited for an interview, your mentors will help with boosting your confidence, giving you mock interviews, and teaching you how to negotiate a better salary.
Finally, if you eventually get a job, the income sharing will kick-in and their cut will be deducted monthly, or you pay the lump sum at once.
What do the reviewers say?
Although Pathrise has helped some people land their jobs, many reviewers on Reddit have something else to say.
According to this Reddit user, Pathrise can be helpful to some extent. They do their part in building your existing skills, but the high markup on information makes the program not worth it.
Through 1-on-1 meetings, Pathrise mentors young professionals on resume tips, networking and salary negotiation skills, along with weekly programming sessions. But for those who are already well-versed in these areas, Pathrise adds little to no value.
The reviewer also shared how inconsistent their assignments are, and that they couldn’t access much of their content.
Another Reddit user focuses mainly on how expensive their ISA-based pricing model can be, leading to more loss than gain.
Charging 7-14% of your gross income, this can be as high as $700 per month on a $60,000 salary, which is not a tax deductible.
The user also ended up with zero interviews despite putting their takeaways from Pathrise into action.
This review from another Reddit user shows how Pathrise didn’t come up with the advisors, referrals, and help they promised.
Moreover, the ISA is applied before the tax deductible is applied, where you end up paying 12-14% of your take-home pay after taxes. And even if you land a job on your own and not through Pathrise, you still need to pay them a portion of your income.
Why some people think Pathrise may not be legitimate
It's understandable why people think Pathrise may be a scam. Here are some gray areas that worry those who are thinking of enrolling in their program.
Unclear eligibility guidelines
Before you join Pathrise's job search program, you must complete a survey, take assessment tests, and then sign a contract.
But there's no clear guideline as to what they look for in candidates besides age, and clearance to work in the USA.
That means whether or not you're accepted into the fellowship is up to their preference.
They don't accept everyone who needs mentors, and seem to only focus on those who have a strong chance of succeeding on their own.
Exorbitant fees
You pay between 7 to 14% of your pre-tax income in your first year if you get any job during your fellowship with Pathrise. This ends up amounting to a great sum (almost a thousand dollars) excluding the tax write-off.
And if you ever decide to withdraw at any point before completion of your 12 months with them, you'll have to pay $250 for every week you've spent with them.
Questionable reviews and unfulfilled promises
9 out of the 12 verified reviews of Pathrise on Trustpilot are 1 or 2 stars.
Pathrise forced Mik to sign a contract quickly during a Zoom call, which contradicted the Admission Consultant’s assurance that they wouldn't consider jobs unrelated to Product Management.
He also didn’t hear back from them later, even though the supervisor scheduled a follow-up call with him concerning the contract.
Jordan's 1-star review raises some doubts about how well Pathrise helps with job interviews. According to him, Youtube and other social media platforms can be better alternatives to get interview tips from, than Pathrise.
Another cause of worry about whether Pathrise is as good as they claim is that a majority of its reviews on Quora and Reddit, both negative and positive, are from Anonymous users or ghost users who only created an account to write a review.
Also, they have turned off comments on their YouTube channel, and most subs on Reddit advise against joining Pathrise, like the one below:
In addition, most reviews, both positive and negative, claim that Pathrise doesn't have an insider network of mentors who work at the companies people dream of.
Mentors are not revealed publicly
Pathrise says they have a network of mentors who work for over 100 industry leading companies, alluding to the likes of Google, Facebook, Apple, and a host of other top tech companies.
But only 5 mentors have details listed on their website.
Furthermore, they frequently put out job postings to hire mentors, with no indication of requirements that the person must be someone from a top company.
Verdict: is Pathrise legit?
The short answer is yes, Pathrise is a legitimate company operating legally in the USA.
But, some of their claims are unverifiable, and the service they provide doesn't seem to match the price you eventually pay.
While they're a reputable company, with funds from some of the biggest investors in the world, they don't have a special network of top mentors who are insiders in the best tech companies.
If you ever decide to take a chance on them, consider the following pros and cons before signing a contract.
Pros and cons of Pathrise
Pros
Cons
Mentorship focuses on getting you a job
No special service and you’ll still do the same amount of work like with other career mentors
No upfront payment
Highly expensive (7 to 14% of pre tax income) if you get a job
You’re guided for a whole year
You’re tied for a whole year
Conclusion
Pathrise is a legitimate company that can shorten how long it takes to land your next job, but it comes at a very high price without offering any special service.
Choosing the right mentor can significantly impact your career. Pathrise may be a great option for job seekers in the U.S. aiming for top roles, but don't overlook MentorCruise as another great choice.
With MentorCruise, you can improve your skills and industry knowledge through our mentorship program. You can select a mentor who matches your needs and pay a simple flat monthly fee, making us a compelling alternative.
Start advancing your career now by browsing top mentors on MentorCruise and book an introductory call today.