upGrad Crosses 2Mn Learners; Becomes Largest Higher Edtech in India

Mumbai, August 31, 2021: Asia’s higher edtech major and recently turned unicorn, upGrad, records yet another striking milestone by crossing the mark of 2Mn learners on its platform. This has been achieved in just 8 months after the global edtech crossed the 1Mn mark in January this year.

upGrad’s growth has been propelled by its strategic M&As as well, and includes international learners driven by the brand’s global university partnerships. About 40% of the total registered learners are from the group companies like upGrad KnowledgeHut, upGrad Campus (previously Impartus), and upGrad Jeet (previously The Gate Academy), while the remaining 60% of learners are registered with the parent brand.

Commenting on this milestone, the three Co-founders, Ronnie Screwvala, Mayank Kumar, and Phalgun Kompalli in a joint statement said, “We remained bullish on our plans for being a truly global company for the 1 Bn workforce and our strategic M&As have also been helping us with inorganic growth across geographies. We are witnessing demand from a wider audience who are being careful about the evolving market needs and is indulging in LifeLongLearning to catapult their career growth. While we feel a certain sense of accomplishment on beating our own targets in less than half of the expected timeline; we are all set for a much bigger success that awaits in the near future.”

The unemployment rate in the country rose to a six-week high of 8.1% in the week ended August 8, the CMIE data suggest. On the other hand, India is expected to have over 1.5 million unfulfilled job vacancies by 2025 just in the field of Cybersecurity, Michael Page India recently reported. The number is far graver if one takes all the new-age Data & Tech roles. Such alarming circumstances in the country are indicative of the massive skill gap that players like upGrad are seeking to bridge.

upGrad, known for driving meaningful career outcomes, offers a host of career services like paid internships, 1:1 mentorship, career counseling, and placement support. Such during and after-course value-added services make upGrad a leader in the higher education sphere that not only concentrates on quality content but is equally committed to driving employment in the country.

Recent reports suggest the company is in advanced talks for a USD 400 Million fundraise at a valuation of USD 4 Billion, and therefore, the milestone of unicorn is not any destination, but a mark on its path towards achieving a larger goal.