Pune Inc: A startup comes up with an innovative way to help students study abroad, get scholarships

In February 2023, the Ministry of Education revealed that 7,70,000 students from India went to study abroad in 2022, which was the largest number in six years.

Gulati and Devika Ghosal, the ex-founder of the startup, started the organisation in 2020, with a few other contemporaries, to reach out to aspiring students but in an innovative manner. According to Inforens, it has enabled almost 6,000 students to fulfil their aspirations of studying abroad since it started. The startup has also helped more than 300 students for the January intake in Canadian institutes.

“The inspiration to start Inforens began with my personal journey of applying to top international universities. There were a lot of challenges. The university suggestions received from consultants in the planning phase were universities they had partnered with, so I was not aware which ones were ranked universities and which were just promoted because agents were making more commissions. When I arrived in the UK, I discussed my experiences with fellow peers already studying here, and they had struggled with similar hardships. That is when the idea of helping international students was born, which helped me realise my vision for Inforens,” says Gulati. The startup was born as a university project before being registered as a UK business.

Among the surprising myths that Inforens wants to bust for prospective students is that studying abroad is for the wealthy. Gulati says that, with appropriate guidance, talented students can apply for scholarships and make their dreams come true.

Students supported by the Inforens community have got scholarships of more than £10,000. “We feel that connecting students with others, who have got scholarships already, increases the chances of getting scholarships by 50 times. Not only that, a lot of guidance on how to claim bursaries and the application process for scholarships is not available with educational agents, which makes it more difficult for students,” he says.

Inforens has won awards such as Grow It Awards funds, through Santander Universities by Queen Mary University of London, the AI Machine Learning Academy, which is supported by the University College London, and the Funding Readiness Programme with Barclays Eagle Labs and Capital Enterprise.

The company has been expanding and creating a presence in India and the UAE. “We have undertaken various initiatives to drive revenue growth and optimise our operations. Our focus is on achieving a healthy and sustainable revenue trajectory, considering the opportunities and challenges in our industry,” says Gulati.