Can edtech provide an alternative to higher education?
Last week President Biden announced the cancellation up to $10K in federal student debt for individuals earning $125K or less, and $20K for those who qualified for Pell grants. However, cancelling student debt only scratches the surface of what’s needed to address higher education affordability.
While university fees have been climbing, the incomes of those who attend and graduate have not kept up the same pace. Higher tuitions combined with pandemic-related disruptions mean that a younger generation of students is now weighing
the value of higher education and its costs, questioning whether a university degree is still the ticket to professional success.
In the US, the number of undergraduate students enrolled in college declined 9.4% during the pandemic, the biggest drop in 50 years.
We're already starting to see the impact of the market dynamics in some of the more mature higher-ed startups, like Coursera. Since its public listing in March 2021, Coursera's share price is down 70%. In Q2 2022, the company reported a 4% decline in the degree segment’s revenue, mainly due to lower-than-expected student enrollment, specific in programs offered by U.S. and European institutions.
With more alternative options surfing in the market, young adults are now more likely to explore how else they can invest in their education outside of established institutions, and where they might see the greatest returns.
Alternatives that tackle learning after higher education aren't a novel idea. MOOCs were part of the first phase of Edtech innovation. However, a new wave of innovative startups is broadening the delivery of upskilling and reskilling learning, aiming to make education costs more affortable and ensuring that job prospects are more certain.
Apprenticeship programs are gaining traction, with programs expanding beyond blue-collar jobs, integrating also corporate and tech jobs. The trend isn't going unnoticed within the Edtech space, with mega successes like Multiverse thriving.
You still have time to sign up for a full week of digital events (Sep. 5-9th). Each day will focus on a different theme and is designed for relevant topics happening in the edtech space. Partners include McKinsey & Co., OECD, Citi, Duolingo, Dealroom, Behavioural Insights Team, WTW, RocketX, Educate Ventures, Sdui and many more.
🌏 How has the Southeast Asia Edtech landscape evolved in the last few years? How can Edtech contribute to solving the most pressing education-related issues in Southeast Asia? Join us on September 8th to discuss the state of Singapore Edtech.
We’ll hear key insights from the State of Singapore Edtech presented by Hester Spiegel-van den Steenhoven (Epic Angels/ Kaizenvest). Followed by a panel discussion, featuring Aik Chuan Goh (LingoAce), Sandeep Aneja (Kaizenvest), Sam Harris (AWS), and Patrick Lim (Enterprise Singapore), moderated by Carla Napoleão (Dealroom). Grab your seat 👈
Latest edtech deals
The largest deals:
🇮🇳 Sunstone Eduversity, an India-based higher education platform, raised a $35M Series C from WestBridge Capital and Alteria Capital.
🇺🇸 Cybrary raised a $25M Series C led by BuildGroup and Gula Tech Adventure. The cyber security training platform aims to close the skills gap among the global cybersecurity workforce.
🇺🇸 Alongside, a startup developing a digital toolkit designed to address teens' mental health, raised a $5.5M Seed Round.
🇰🇷 Opensky, a startup offering higher education admissions consulting and mentoring services, raised a $5.2M Early VC round.
🇨🇦 Moozoom, a social-emotional learning platform designed to improve students' mental well-being through videos, raised a $3.9M Seed round.
Other notable edtech deals:
🇦🇺 Melbourne-based Intellischool raised a $3.3M Seed round from Schoolbox, Curio Ventures and several other angel investors.
🇺🇸 Your Money Line, a workplace financial wellness and education platform, raised a $2.8M Seed round.
🇸🇬 BrightChamps has acquired Schola for $15M. This marks the biggest acquisition in ASEAN6 region to date. Check the recently published report by Skills Nation and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, made with the support of Dealroom data.
We’ve ranked the top 100 startups for 6 different industries to watch based on our Dealroom Signal: a powerful algorithm helping VCs, Corporates and Governments find the most promising up and coming startups.
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