CollegeDekho

Founded in 2015, CollegeDekho is an education technology company operating as a comprehensive ecosystem for higher education in India. The company was established by Ruchir Arora, Saurabh Jain, and Rohit Saha, who were friends from their engineering college days. The founding was motivated by CEO Ruchir Arora's personal struggles in accessing higher education information, a challenge he aimed to solve for others. Arora holds a B.Tech from VNIT Nagpur and an MBA from the Indian School of Business, with prior leadership experience at HT Media, IBM, and other tech companies. Co-founder Saurabh Jain, also a VNIT Nagpur alumnus, brings operational expertise from his time at Cognizant and Volkswagen, where he managed large-scale projects. Rohit Saha, another VNIT Nagpur graduate, oversees sales and revenue, leveraging his experience from roles at Videocon and Bharti Airtel.

CollegeDekho operates on a dual business model, serving both students (B2C) and educational institutions (B2B). For students, the platform offers a free-to-use college discovery engine with a database of over 35,000 colleges, personalized counseling, and a Common Application Form (CAF) that simplifies applying to multiple institutions. Additional student-centric services include assistance with education loans, scholarship information, and study abroad programs. The company's revenue is primarily generated through partnerships with colleges and universities, which pay a fee for successful student enrollments facilitated by the platform. CollegeDekho also earns from advertising and promotional services for institutions and premium, paid services for students seeking enhanced guidance.

The platform's core offering is a technology-driven, end-to-end guidance system for the entire college admission process. It employs a hybrid approach, combining a vast digital repository of information with one-on-one expert counseling to provide tailored recommendations. A key feature is the 'CollegeDekho Assured' program, which partners with colleges to offer industry-relevant skills alongside traditional degree courses, enhancing student employability. Since its inception, the company has expanded its services through strategic acquisitions, including GetMyUni, IELTSMaterial, and PrepBytes, to broaden its offerings in test preparation and coding education. The company has reported significant growth, with revenue reaching ₹216 crore in FY24, a 32% increase from the previous fiscal year.

Keywords: higher education, college admissions, student counseling, edtech India, college search platform, common application form, study abroad, career guidance, education loans, university partnerships, online enrollment, test preparation, Ruchir Arora, student recruitment, education services, college discovery, skill-based education, admission support, psychometric tests, edtech acquisitions