Scholarship platform opens to Nigerians, Indians, Brazilians, Kenyans and South Africans

Imagine access to US$90 billion of scholarships and grants across 34 countries all in one site, saving 130 hours of Google search. That’s what online platform StudyFree promises.

Now, it’s open to students from five more developing countries: Nigeria, India, Kenya, Brazil and South Africa. They can now access a database of over 15,000 programmes with scholarship opportunities worth over US$107,000,

“StudyFree is actively growing in our mission to take the edtech industry to the next level by putting students at the centre of the business model,” said Dasha Kroshkina, StudyFree CEO and founder, tells The PIE News. “We work to democratise higher education experience for students across the world.”

Six-step scholarship website

Here’s how StudyFree works. You start with assessing your eligibility against 116 factors. There is a “monthly action plan” to evaluate, beef and help you “secure placement to the dream school.”

Scholarship website StudyFree aims to democratise higher education across the world. Source: Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP

Step two is matching with over 100,000 programmes. They match any profile, whether you seek Ivy Leagues or “cheap and easy relocation.” Once you’re matched, it’s time to start applying — StudyFree claims it can fast-track the average 11-step, 75 questions and 28 final documents process, by being five times faster with a 98% success rate.

Step four follows with support in bridging the cultural gap to make your accomplishments stand out. Then, you’ll get to connect with those who have come before you to learn from their experience and mistakes. For the final step, you’ll get help from StudyFree’s partners to prepare for exams, prove your language proficiency up to speed, apply for bank cards, and more.

Kroshkina founded scholarship website StudyFree in 2018, an idea born out of her personal experience. Born in a small Russian town, studying or travelling abroad seemed a distant dream. She neither had the money nor family support to do so. “I dreamt of studying abroad, but just like you I didn’t know where to start,” she says on the website. With these, she received educational grants for over US$100,000 and studied in China, Spain and the US.