The edtech startup SecureMyScholarship, situated in Dubai, has raised $550,000 in a bridge funding round, valuing the business at $6 million. The platform helps students find scholarship opportunities. The startup plans to use the additional funding to expand its operations into India and expedite the development of its product.
Many investors participated in the investment round, including Sabban Corp Investments, a venture capital firm based in Dubai that specializes in early-stage investments throughout the GCC, and Kaustubh Wagle, Managing Director at Boston Consulting Group Middle East and Ramit Harisinghani, General Manager of the Devialet and Dyson brands at Chalhoub Group.
The startup has raised $1.2 million in total capital as of this most recent investment. According to the startup, it has already achieved positive cash flow and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA).
Almost all of the private universities in the United Arab Emirates, more than 220 in the United States, and more than 150 in the United Kingdom are listed on SecureMyScholarship’s platform, which it launched in November 2021. By the time March 2024 rolls around, the startup will have awarded over $8.2 million in scholarships, helping over 1,500 students to become enrolled in the universities of their dreams worldwide.
Craig Fernandes, the CEO and co-founder of SecureMyScholarship, estimates that between 5,000 and 10,000 students visit the website each week to search for scholarships and funding opportunities.
“Our platform is 100% free for students applying for scholarships in the UAE, and for students applying for scholarships in the USA and UK, we charge a nominal one-time subscription fee of $50,” Fernandes notes. “Aside from scholarship support, our team also helps students with loan applications, visa applications, and university application submissions.” Fernandes and his fully remote team, which consists of 26 people based in 16 different cities across five countries around the world, now aim to connect students with $100 million in scholarships by expanding its university network, growing to new geographies, and further enhancing the platform.
Speaking about the future of the edtech space, Fernandes expects that, one, the demand for top quality higher education will continue to surge, two, tuition at top universities will continue to rapidly increase, and, three, demand for distance learning/online degrees will continue to significantly decline, which has been an active trend since the end of the COVID-19 crisis. “Our platform is built keeping all three of these in mind,” Fernandes says. “We list many of the world’s top 200 universities on our platform (including quite a few of the top 50 global universities), and all universities listed on our platform are present with a scholarship/fee waiver for students who apply via our platform, thus helping provide financial relief for students. 99% of courses listed on our platform are on-campus courses.”
