'We Have Carved A Niche In Higher Education Domain': Ruchir Arora

What was the vision behind establishing CollegeDekho?

Collegedekho.com is the largest higher education platform in India and has counselled over two million students since its inception. It was established with a vision to help and put the interests of the students first. We wanted to institutionalise counseling for selecting and taking admission in higher education institutes in India and we achieved that by bridging the gap using technology & product to make information on exams, colleges, courses & careers easily available. We believe this value-added service should be instantly available regardless of a student’s background or geography to help them attain their ideal career. We recently came up with a campaign called ‘Marks Nahi Haal Pucho’ to offer a platform for the students to share the issues affecting their mental well-being which reinforces our vision of prioritizing the benefit of the student first.

Whether it is information on a course, college or any sort of permutation combination, we guide and mentor the student into the right direction by understanding the student’s interest. We want them to make informed decisions and optimise their time, money, and skills.

What is your USP viz-a-viz the competition?

CollegeDekho is India’s first technology driven education start-up that provides end-to-end solutions for students’ higher education needs. We operate on an extremely intuitive and user-focused technology and a unique profile-based college recommendations engine that helps students find the best fit information for 35000+ colleges available on our website. To make the admission process simpler and easier for the students, we have the Common Application Form (CAF) which is a unique interface through which a student can apply to numerous colleges using a single application form. We provide an extensive personalized counselling to understand the students’ needs and help them make an informed decision. Our advanced products like Step-by-Step College Selection, Practice Tests and Psychometric Tests scientifically support higher education selection decisions. Our AI powered Chat-Bot has handled 20L+ queries since its inception in 2019. We are a one stop solution for all issues/problems related to higher education such as Education Loans, Hostel Accommodations, Insurance, Application Assistance, etc.

Since EdTech is in a phase of the boom, what are your strategies to tap growth?

EdTech as a sector was already in ascension before 2020. The pandemic merely hastened the adoption of digital as a viable alternative. We observed a steep rise in our website traffic as compared to 2019. We are actively expanding our number of partner colleges to help students take advantage of the Common Application Form (CAF) and make their admission process a little simpler and easier. We also want to increase the number of Higher Education Institutes that are eligible for Education Loans to aid the students. Some new services like Online Courses and Certification Programmes are in the works as well. We want to provide these multiple touchpoints in the higher education ecosystem so that we stay true to our vision of being a One-Stop Solution for the students.

What are the different segments that you operate in?

With over 800 partner colleges as clients, Collegedekho.com has 35K+ unique colleges listed on its website and offers latest information on admissions, entrance tests, infrastructure, courses, and careers. Our customised student outreach programme is in sync with the students’ needs of today and has garnered education seekers from across the globe. We have assisted them with counseling and admission services to help them take admission in the college suitable to their academic background, skill set & potential.

The Study Abroad business of CollegeDekho offers premium services to its students by providing them with all the assistance to apply to any foreign university of their choice. We help students in the full cycle of admission to foreign universities right from student profiling, application assistance, test prep coaching & solutions to university guidance as well as accommodation, VISA, and Immigration assistance. We have helped thousands of students to get admission into their institutes of choice across the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, Singapore, and Europe.

We also provide Education Loans to the students and are planning to launch live tutoring support to help the students reach their maximum academic potential.

What are your views on the National Education Policy?

It is great to see that the National Education Policy aims to dissolve the rigid separation between arts, commerce and science in both schools and colleges. This will encourage cross functional thinking amongst the students which can only be good for the future of our nation's workforce. We recently ran a campaign aimed at helping the students cope with the mental pressure that examinations put on them called 'Marks Nahi Haal Pucho' which is in line with the policy's aim to reduce the stigma around board & competitive examinations. Also, many students are unable to continue with their education due to some unforeseen circumstances and maintaining a credit bank will ensure they can always resume their education from where they left off. On the surface of it the proposed changes are laudable but a lot depends on the implementation.

What are your global expansion plans, given that you already have a study abroad vertical?

We at CollegeDekho started the Study Abroad vertical two years back. We want to replicate the learnings and the ecosystem we have built in the domestic space and use that to make the study abroad space more efficient. We are fast on the path to be a leader in the study abroad market. Backed by collaboration with numerous Universities, we have carved a niche in the higher education domain. We offer services such as test preparation, profile building, essays and admission guidance for the students. We have partnered with some of the biggest global players to be able to stitch together a bouquet of best possible services for the students. Down the line we expect to also be doing some in-depth work with TOEFL and GRE within the country.

In the near future we plan to expand our partnerships with more foreign universities and also venture into more countries.

What is your revenue model?

We have separate revenue models for both domestic and study abroad markets. For the domestic market we do not charge anything from the student and provide them end to end services related to their counselling and admissions. In the Study Abroad market, we charge the student a slight fee and assist them with end-to-end solutions for their entire admission, travel and stay processes. We also offer Digital Marketing and student recruitment services to our B2B clients.

What are the trends that you are witnessing post pandemic?

The pandemic ushered in some new practices to the education sector. The first trend we noticed was the uncertainty around offline admissions in colleges made the process of online admissions stronger. The role of our counsellors proved vital in helping many students get admission to colleges as the students were not entirely sure how to apply. The second trend we noticed is that both students and universities found out that online education was not only a necessity but also a very viable alternative to traditional learning. Hence, many colleges and universities are adopting a hybrid model in which students are free to attend the class either online or in person. This hybrid model of education has also allowed many students to pick up colleges in other states but not have to leave their own states which in turn reduced education induced migration.