Last week, ApplyBoard—the online platform that helps students access global education—expanded presence in India by opening a new office in Gurugram. “Post the pandemic, we are seeing pent-up demand from students across the world; we are growing our global presence to help meet the market demand. The investment in India is a testament to the strength of the India team and growth of the region,” Massi Basiri, the co-founder & chief operating officer of ApplyBoard, told FE. “India is our top priority not just in terms of the market, but also as a natural place of extension of our R&D and other support teams.”

Basiri added that even during the pandemic the number of students who used ApplyBoard grew. “In 2020, ApplyBoard became the go-to option for those who could no longer travel, which led to our continuous growth throughout 2021. Last year removed the option for university representatives to meet prospective international students in-person. This resulted in ApplyBoard experiencing a 300% increase in new school sign-ups last year and becoming a staple of the international student sector,” he said.

India plans

“In India, ApplyBoard is serving thousands of students and Indian recruitment partners with over 1,500 schools in Canada, the US, the UK and Australia, and this expansion will help more Indian students during their education journey,” added Jo Johnson, ApplyBoard’s advisory board chairman.

For students, ApplyBoard is a platform to apply to schools and study abroad with one common application. “Through our team of experts, we streamline the application process, from discovery and application to enrolment, assisting students to pursue their dreams of studying abroad,” said Karunn Kandoi, India operation head.

As the world is gradually returning to the pre-Covid-19 phase, Kandoi said the company has a positive outlook on the next couple of months and travel restrictions. “We continue to keep a close watch on the latest travel news and vaccination policies that will impact Indian student journeys. Throughout the pandemic, we have noticed a lot of pent-up demand for an international education experience amongst Indian students,” he said. “For example, ApplyBoard data science modelling predicts 2021 study permit approvals for Indian nationals in Canada will surpass the record high of more than 111,000 set in 2019 and continue growing in 2022.”

Going forward, ApplyBoard plans to support Indian students by offering the best technology, partnerships and service. “Through our artificial intelligence and machine learning-enabled platform, we can ensure students have the best application possible to strengthen their chances of acceptance,” Basiri said. “We will continue to invest heavily in research and development to create products that help ease out the application process for students. R&D is and will continue to get the highest amount of investment from ApplyBoard.”

ApplyBoard also constantly works with school partners to find new programmes and opportunities to help students find schools and programmes that meet their needs. This includes working with school partners to create and launch exclusive scholarships for students, and has resulted in more than $50 million in exclusive scholarships being awarded to ApplyBoard students in the past few years.

Founded in 2015 in Canada, ApplyBoard said it has assisted over 200,000 students with their educational journey, and works with primary, secondary and post-secondary educational institutions. It doesn’t charge students any fee, but earns revenue by charging institutions that partner it. In addition to the 1,500-odd educational institutions, ApplyBoard also works with over 7,500 recruitment partners.