In this exclusive interview, Rohit Gupta, Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Co-Founder of College Vidya, shares with Anannya Saraswat, Reporter (Public Sector Leadership), APAC Media, insights into the challenges and opportunities shaping India’s fast-growing online education space.
Gupta explains College Vidya’s ‘learner-first’ guidance model. He also discusses the role of technology and AI in delivering personalised, unbiased counselling while maintaining trust, quality, and long-term learner outcomes.
What gap did you see in the education sector that led to the creation of College Vidya?
When we started collegevidya.com, online education in India was expanding rapidly, but learners were left confused rather than empowered. Information around approvals, outcomes, and the real value of online degrees was scattered and often influenced by aggressive marketing. Learners were expected to make life-changing decisions with incomplete or biased information. We built College Vidya to act as a neutral, learner-first guidance platform—one that brings clarity, comparison, and credibility to online education choices.
What are the biggest operational challenges in guiding learners through online education choices?
The biggest challenge is that no two learners are alike. Each learner comes with different career goals, financial constraints, academic backgrounds, and personal responsibilities. At scale, the challenge is to ensure every learner receives personalised, honest guidance without pressure. Operationally, that means training counsellors, building strong processes, and using technology to maintain consistency—while still treating each learner as an individual.
How do you ensure consistent quality and transparency when working with multiple universities?
Quality and transparency are non-negotiable for us. We work only with UGC-approved online universities and continuously verify program approvals, fee structures, learning formats, and academic support. Every online university listed on College Vidya is evaluated across multiple
parameters and presented in simple language so learners can compare objectively. If a university does not meet our internal standards of transparency, we even delist them.
How does your platform use technology to match learners with the right online programs?
College Vidya’s platform is designed to remove confusion from decision-making. Our AI-powered tools and Sara, our AI learning advisor, analyse a learner’s profile—career aspirations, academic history, budget, and time availability—to shortlist the most relevant universities. This technology ensures unbiased filtering and clarity, while our expert counsellors step in to add a real-world perspective. The result is technology-enabled guidance that supports, not replaces, human judgment.
Are there any new tech tools or features you plan to add to improve decision-making for learners?
Yes, we are continuously strengthening our tech ecosystem. We are building outcome-based dashboards, smarter AI-led comparison tools, and enhanced recommendation engines that evolve with learner behaviour. The focus is on helping learners evaluate programs not just on content or fees, but on long-term value, career relevance, and return on investment. Every tool we build is aimed at making decisions more informed and future-ready.
How does College Vidya track whether learners are satisfied after enrolling?
Learner satisfaction is tracked well beyond enrolment. We monitor feedback at multiple stages—post-admission, during the learning journey, and at completion. Our counsellors stay in touch to understand challenges, engagement levels, and overall experience. We also track indicators like continuation rates and grievance resolution timelines. For us, satisfaction is not a metric; it’s a responsibility.
What kind of support is provided to learners beyond course selection?
Our role does not end with course selection. We support learners through admission processes, documentation, fee guidance, and post-enrolment queries. We also provide access to academic support resources, career-oriented sessions, and continuous guidance whenever learners need clarity. College Vidya is built to be a long-term learning companion, not just a discovery platform. Our guiding principle is our 4 Cs—Compare, Counsel, Career & Community.
What sets College Vidya apart from other edtech or counselling platforms?
Most platforms are either content-driven or sales-driven. College Vidya is guidance-driven. We combine data, technology, and human expertise to help learners make decisions with confidence. We openly share pros and cons, avoid exaggerated claims, and focus on suitability rather than popularity. Our differentiator is simple but rare—honesty at scale.
What will be your biggest focus for growth in the next 3–5 years?
Our focus will be on deepening trust and impact. We want to strengthen learner outcomes through better tools, deeper insights, and more meaningful support across the learning lifecycle. We also plan to explore global online programs and new learner segments, but always with the same principle—clarity, credibility, and learner-first guidance.
