Noida-based study abroad start-up AdmitKard has raised $1 million in a pre-Series A funding round to help it expand its presence across 100 cities in India. The round, which saw participation from India and Australia- based investors, was led by Australian edtech fund Growth DNA.
Founded in 2016, AdmitKard helps students to apply to over 1,000 universities and colleges in the US, the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, among others.
“We plan to rapidly expand our presence across 100+ cities in India”
Piyush Bhartiya, co-founder of AdmitKard, said the company will use the capital to enhance its product, strengthen its AI-driven counselling algorithms and blockchain-managed partner contracts.
“We also plan to rapidly expand our presence across 100+ cities in India through our already thriving partner network,” added Bhartiya.
The startup uses the concept of “near-peer” mentoring and AI/ML to assist in decision making.
It connects aspiring study abroad students with their peers already studying in universities overseas through the AdmitKard platform.
“AdmitKard is a data-enabled social platform which helps in eliminating information asymmetry and building trust among aspirants,” said Rachit Agrawal, co-founder at AdmitKard.
“It is a socially active platform by the students, for the students. Current students are passionate to guide aspirants on AdmitKard as they feel they were misguided when they were applying to study abroad.”
The platform has already partnered with multiple service providers ranging from test prep, student accommodation, education loans, banking and forex.
According to a report by KPMG, the Indian edtech segment is expected to be a $1.96 billion market by 2021.
