Masai School, a career-focussed alternative education start-up, has raised $5 million (₹36.2 crore) in a Series A funding round led by Omidyar Network India and joined by existing investors Unitus Ventures, India Quotient and AngelList India.

Masai School had raised its pre-Series A round of $2.5 million in August 2020, led by Unitus Ventures.

Headquartered in Bengaluru, Masai School began operations in June 2019.

With the latest funding, Masai School will launch new programmes in user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) designing, Product management (PM) and data analytics, in addition to strengthening the existing offerings of full stack web and Android Development. The funding will also be used to hire leading industry experts and teaching practitioners. The company is on track to graduate more than 2,000 learners in FY2020-21.

“Year after year, India produces lakhs of graduates, of which a very small percentage are actually employable. On the other hand, the burgeoning industry struggles to find relevant entry-level talent, which clearly implies that the root of the problem lies in the existing education system. We are building Masai with a clear focus to enable youth to launch careers in a field of their choice. Why should they go to a college or a university that puts them in debt, only to follow that up with finishing schools or expensive certifications — as a supplement — in the hopes of finding a job?” said Prateek Shukla, CEO and co-founder, Masai School.

“This funding comes at a time when we are progressing to the next level, transitioning from our business model of being a coding-centric to a career-focussed institute. To provide equal opportunity, Masai School, doesn’t ask for any degree, and neither does it filter by stream of secondary education. We have helped more than 200 students launch their full-time careers in the technology industry; more than 50 per cent of them came from a non-computer science background,” Shukla added.

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