In Conversation With The WorldGrad’s Co-Founder

Article Featured On: Hello Entrepreneurs

The WorldGrad is a tech-enabled one-stop shop for students interested in pursuing higher education. Virtual internships with more than 4000 organizations from over 79 countries have just been created. Students can transfer credits from the first year to their choice US colleges for the remaining three years.

The WorldGrad is the brainchild of Abhinav Mital, an ISB Hyderabad and IIT Delhi alumnus. Having approximately 15 years of education expertise, Abhinav was a founding member and former Partner of Parthenon-worldwide EY’s education practice.

Q – How did you embark on the journey of The WorldGrad?

Abhinav Mital – Amit Garga, Pranav Saxena and myself have more than 40 years of successful expertise in education between us. Having identified the challenges students aspiring for quality overseas education faced, such as academic skill gaps, mis-enrolment, and financial hurdles, we realized that utilizing technology to build a bridge for students pursuing international education would help create personalized paths for each student and increase their chances of success. It will make a move easier and more convenient while saving money. The WorldGrad, founded in 2021, is an extended initiative of LINC Education, a technology-enabled educational service to enhance online learning.

Q – Can you describe how The WorldGrad works?

AM – Our mission is to increase access to high-quality education for students, which means we need to expand the options a student can choose to pursue overseas education. It is not just about adding more universities, but it also adds new modes or paths through which the student can study at those universities. We are the first to introduce a hybrid route to overseas degrees – a student can choose to do up to one year of their degree through The WorldGrad and finish the rest at an overseas campus of choice. Students can choose the duration, the subjects, and the timing of their study with us, creating flexible and personalized routes based on their readiness to transition overseas. We also offer students direct ways to go overseas to the same universities and institutions if they wish to.

The first step is to help students choose the best path for them, for which we use our team of highly experienced academic counsellors. Once the student enrols, they study in our bespoke online environment with tailored academic support from teachers in India as well as from abroad. It allows them to bridge the academic gaps and get accustomed to overseas academic standards.

Finally, once they are ready for transit, we support them with all formalities such as financing, visa, and on-arrival support.

Our primary goal is to prepare students for academic achievement in an international setting. We envision the Hybrid Model as a supplement to the conventional offline curriculum model. We want to broaden students’ opportunities to seek academic exposure.

Q – What are your plans for the organization?

AM – We at The WorldGrad, want to provide online gateways for students to globally ranked foreign universities. We have received an amazing response so far, motivating us to expand. We will be teaching more platforms by expanding in India. Online Education Services (OES), Australia, a renowned online education enabler, recently invested in The WorldGrad, which helped grow the platform, enabling more students to study abroad at leading universities. Blessed with this initiative, by the end of 2022, we aim to have 200 university collaborations, including over 50 academic program partners. We will add 500 employees to our team over the next 18-24 months, including educators, content creators, administration, recruitment, and branding.

Q – What is the USP of The WorldGrad?

AM – The WorldGrad, is bringing new and innovative academic options to an otherwise traditional study abroad sector. We have resolved the most common difficulties students have when considering studying abroad, such as costs, adjusting to a new educational system, as well as the cultural difference that comes with moving to a new country. By completing a part of their overseas degree from home, a student typically saves 20-25% in overall expenses, gets fluent with the academic environment, and can prove their commitment to studies beyond doubt. Our curriculum is generated in partnership with foreign institutions. Conducted by international professors, we are providing students with the same academic program they would have obtained in other countries. Additionally, our individualized instructional assistance, one-on-one tutoring program, and high-quality international collaborations make The WorldGrad a one-of-a-kind experience.

Q – Your thoughts on the emerging EdTech Industry.

AM – The education industry has changed over time. The pandemic-induced digital world has aided in the sector’s expansion. Since then, EdTech companies have risen to prominence and facilitated remote education. According to a Research and Markets report, the worldwide edtech industry will be worth $254.80 billion in 2021. It is estimated to reach $605.40 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 15.52 percent.

We see that the education industry has risen at an accelerating rate. The pandemic created the foundation for the Edtech industry with technological changes and broadened its scope drastically. While this industry remained stable last year, we see the growth and transition in 2022. With digitalization reaching its pinnacle, the Edtech sector has projected to produce even more significant outcomes in the future years.

As a result, it is reasonable to conclude that the future of the Edtech industry appears promising!

Author: Deepak Shukla