Middle school is the time when students’ brains are developing in a way that allows for greater exploration –  but it’s also a period of high risk for disengaging from school, making personal connection and planning for the future especially important. That’s why starting career exploration in middle school is a necessity for preparing our youth to thrive in the future. Today’s students need better and earlier career exposure to increase their likelihood of successfully transitioning into the high-value postsecondary education and training options increasingly required for good jobs in a changing economy and labor market. 


While the conditions for career exploration in middle school are ideal, recent research shows the field is still relatively nascent. In our recent Britebound™ survey, about 60% of young adults aged 16-25 said their middle school had not provided them with the right resources to plan for career and education. 


Meanwhile, a recent nationwide analysis of middle school career exploration, found that most states have identified middle school career exploration as an important component of a student’s education, yet many states rely on paper-pencil activities that are compliance-driven and fall short of helping students thoughtfully consider their path to a fulfilling career.  


Research shows that students are hungry for career exploration experiences that go beyond “sit-and-get” presentations or speakers. They want experiences that are more active and hands-on, such as opportunities to job shadow or go on a field trip to see firsthand what professionals do in their careers and experience for themselves how the work is done. Yet, job shadowing and workplace tours only make up about 12% of the opportunities made available in middle school for learners to explore what could be possible. 


That’s why Britebound partnered with Education Strategy Group (ESG) to build the Middle School Career Exploration Learning & Impact Network, a coalition of states to strengthen and accelerate middle school career exploration efforts within their state and nationwide. This first cohort of states included Arizona, Arkansas, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Washington. The goals of the cohort were two-fold: a nationally-focused goal to support nation-wide field building with case-making, implementation resources, and learnings to enhance career exploration, and a state-focused goal to leverage the priorities and strategies emerging from the network to generate clear goals and action steps for each participating state. 


As a result of our first cohort in 2025, the Network co-created several public resources that will help catalyze the field of middle school career exploration across the country:



Model Set of Policies

A model set of policies that states can adapt to craft their own legislation focused on middle school career exploration definitions and governance, district and student requirements, accountability and reporting, and building infrastructure and capacity.



Britebound CareerReady HQ Resources

A collection of resources in our Britebound CareerReady HQ specifically for middle school career exploration, including resources like AdvanceCTE’s Design Principles for Middle Grades CTE, sample career coach job descriptions used by state teams, and more. 



Joint Commitment Statement

A Joint Commitment Statement signed by state leaders from the Cohort One states participating in the Network, demonstrating what it means to prioritize providing students with meaningful career exploration opportunities starting in the middle grades. 



Britebound and ESG are happy to announce we will be continuing the Network in 2026 with a second cohort of states. Stay tuned for updates!