Masai School, an EdTech platform which offers courses in software development and data analytics, has raised $10 million (around INR 82 crore) in its Series B funding round led by Omidyar Network India along with existing investors including India Quotient and Unitus Ventures.
The round also witnessed participation from two Indian sports stalwarts, Mithali Raj and Bhaichung Bhutia, as investors and partners for an undisclosed amount.
The Bengaluru-based company plans to utilize the latest fund to launch two new course categories while also enabling the expansion of its flagship “zero-to-one” skilling course in Software Development and Data Analytics.
Co-founded in 2019 by Prateek Shukla, Nrupul Dev and Yogesh Bhat, Masai School is a higher education career institute which trains young talent for some of the most in-demand jobs. The platform offers full-stack web development, backend development and data analytics courses to make students job ready. In addition, it also offers seven-month courses in the said tech stream and once the aspirants clear their courses, it helps them get jobs via its placement network.
Masai School is on a mission to help young Indians find lucrative job opportunities in the IT sector by honing their tech skills and connecting them with legacy tech companies and startups.
Commenting on the fundraising, Co-founder & CEO of Masai School, Prateek Shukla, said:
This is an opportune time for us to pick up our series B funding, and we are excited to work with our new partners and our current investors alike. Our mission remains to build the country’s largest employable tech workforce. The last 3 years have been proof of our competency in bridging the tech skill gap for over 800 tech companies who have hired more than 2000 alumni.
The startup claims to have placed over 2,000 students across 25 batches, with a placement rate of more than 94 percent and an average annual package of Rs 7.5 lakh. It also claimed to have placed candidates at Ola, Swiggy, Meesho, Capgemini, Paytm, Dream 11, GlobalLogic, and ShareChat, among others.
Masai School is launching its first up-skilling course, MasaiX., which aims at fast-tracking growth for software developers in India to meet demand of tech professionals in Global Capability Centres s and Sr. Software Developer roles. It is also launching the Scholar Program, targeted at college students to supplement their college education with industry-necessary skills. The Scholar Program, which is a prepaid program, is being rolled out by the company’s subsidiary, Prepleaf, acquired by Masai last year in December.
Speaking at the press event, Mithali Raj said:
The common thought in India is that when a woman chooses her sporting career, her personal life takes a backseat. However, with Masai, Every individual gets yet another chance to have another career option apart from sports and excel in it.
Besides making the investment in Masai, the two sports icons also announced scholarships– ‘Mithali Raj Scholarship for Women in Tech’ and ‘Bhaichung Scholarship for Extracurricular Excellence’. These scholarships will offer financial assistance of up to INR 1.5 crore to selected students every year.
The latest funding came two weeks after the company reportedly raised $4.77 million in its pre-Series B funding round from India Quotient and Unitus Ventures. Masai School is one of the several players in India inspired by the US-based Lambda School. Newton School and Scaler by InterviewBit also operate in the same space.
