20 Things You Didnt Know About StuDocu

StuDocu is a startup that has been making the news lately. It is a business that helps students by providing resources for obtaining good notes from their classes. The platform is a helpful source that acquires and shares the best student-created class notes. If you’re not yet familiar with the company, here are 20 things you probably didn’t know about StuDocu.

1. StuDocu is an ed-tech company

According to Techcrunch, StuDocu is categorized as an ed-tech business. It has created a large and profitable platform that aids in sourcing and sharing class notes that are created by students.

2. StuDocu uses technology to return to old fashioned learning methods

Although it may sound like a juxtaposition or a bit oxymoronic, StuDocu is a modern tech company that is leading students in returning to the old-fashioned ways of studying. In a time when remote learning has forced many to learn from Zoom and other video classroom sessions, notetaking has become nearly obsolete. Fewer students take notes, but rather, try to rely on memory and what they’ve heard the instructor say. StuDocu helps to provide students with well-written notes that are composed by students, who capture the essence of the subject matter well. They make this highly valuable resource available to all subscribers. Many students have opted for recording sessions and playing back the contents but having physical notes allows for more old-fashioned yet effective means of studying and reflecting on essential information.

3. StuDocu was founded by four students

StuDocu has n interesting history. The founders are four students from the Netherlands, which is the home country of StuDocu. The co-founders are Marnix Broer, Jacques Huppes, Lucan van den Houten, and Sander Kuijik. They established the company in 2013 by going through a crowdsourcing site on the internet to try to help people studying the same college courses get together online and help each other through sharing notes that they uploaded to the site. They exchanged the notes with one another to help better cover the knowledge bases required for the various classes.

4. StuDocu started as a free resource

In its early days, StuDocu was offered as a free service for college students. When the founders of the company prepared to graduate from college, they realized that they would need to find some way to make money for survival. They had an ideal resource in StuDocu and decided to turn the tool they created into a for-profit business. They got to work and developed a model that included a free version, but also developed a premium model that would help to monetize the site through a subscription fee.

5. StuDocu still offers free resources

The top twenty percent of all documents stored on the StuDocu servers are offered for a small subscription fee. The remaining eighty percent of the resources are available without charge. This was a fair compromise that allows students from all over the world to use the resources, but those who want to utilize the very best and most beneficial notes are willing to pay the low subscription price. It has worked well for everyone involved.

6. StuDocu offers incentives for note-takers

StuDocu allows students from around the world to upload their class notes to share with others. Those that are of the best quality are placed at the premium level for access. Although the founders encourage students to only share their best notes, occasionally some that are low quality get through. They do their best to monitor this but a few do get through, however, they don’t make it to the premium section so nobody gets hurt in the deal. StuDocu offers incentives for uploading the best premium quality notes by offering a variety of different rewards such as lottery tickets and other items for superb work.

7. StuDocu has several competitive rivals in the industry

Other tech companies compete with StuDocu, with similar platforms. Some of the larger and more successful companies include Chegg, NexusNotes, Brainly, Academia, Docsity, and StudySmarter. The biggest contender is the United States-based edtech company Course Hero, which has a valuation of $1.1 billion and has reached unicorn status.

8. StuDocu is an emerging leader in the industry

Although many of the competing edtech companies have been in business longer and are thriving, StuDocu has an edge over them. It is a leading global edtech company that operates with over 30 local languages supported. This makes access possible to millions of students. The company also maintains millions of documents that provide students with a wealth of choices for class notes that are cataloged for easy navigation and locating the most appropriate notes. Through StuDocu, millions of students have exchanged their class notes and knowledge.

9. StuDocu serves students of various ages

The first StuDocu catalogs of notes resources were intended for students at the university level. This has changed since its inception. for example, students in the UK in a younger age bracket than university level are benefiting from age 14 forward. Notes to help them prepare for A-Levels, as well as GCSEs, are available now. The notes are based upon specified curriculums and are categorized for specified subjects within set countries to meet the actual objectives.

10. StuDocu is getting ready to expand

The leaders at StuDocu are currently looking at testing in various new markets within the educational universe of the world. Many opportunities have not yet been explored. They’re in the process of testing the markets to add the most appropriate categories to meet more of the world’s educational needs. The current research is a precursor to StuDocu’s expansion into these new promising markets.

11. StuDocu is filling the gap

Unfortunately, there is still a huge disparity between the content that professors are delivering and the needs of students before taking weighty tests. Course content and lectures do not always fill the knowledge gaps to adequately prepare many students at the university level. This is where StuDocu’s voluminous catalog of resources can help. It can aid in filling in the knowledge gaps that still exist within certain sectors of the educational sphere. While this is not always the case with professors, there is a large enough problem that merits such action and supplemental resource to cover students enrolled in courses for which professors fail to deliver the quality of content that is expected.

12. StuDocu began as a bootstrapped operation

StuDocu is a startup with humble beginnings. It was as bootstrapped as a business could come until the co-founders made the pitch for venture capital fundraising for expansion. The company was started on a shoestring budget and brought in no financial resources. Gaining size and scale was not possible until the decision was made to grow the business for monetization.

13. StuDocu is a Series B venture capital-backed startup

According to Crunchbase, StuDoc has entered a new phase of development. It has recently received venture capital funding from investors to become established and expand into new territories. The most recent round of funding closed on May 10, 2021, in a round of Series B funding. It was led by Partech, and Piton Capital with 2 other investors. Over 3 rounds of VC funding, the company has raised 46.7 million in Euros.

14. StuDocu has high investor confidence

StuDocu is a privately held company that has secured high confidence from its investors. The two lead investors are Piton Capital and Partech. They are joined by Point Nine and Peak Capital. The first venture capital fundraising round for StuDocu closed on December 3, 2015, in a seed round that raised 1.4 million Euros. This was followed by a Series A round that closed August 1, 2019, raising an additional 4.2 million Euros, then the most recent round of Series B funding. The proceeds of the fundraising events are earmarked for expanding the reach of StuDoc to more places throughout the world. It may include yet more categories for the current resource catalog, however, research into new markets is currently ongoing so not much is known about what these expansions and new products will look like. We’ll have to wait to find out what the current research shows when it is completed.

15. StuDocu is led by a small executive team

StuDocu is still a relatively new company and it is still in its infancy in the development process. There are currently four members on its executive leadership team. Jaques Huppes is a co-founder. Although he is not directly involved in any other active leadership roles, he is still active as an advisor. Marnix Broher is the chief executive officer of StuDocu. Lucan van de Houten is the chief technical officer, and Reynauld Fasciaux is the chief operating officer.

16. The board of StuDocu is tiny

While some edtech companies maintain large advisory boards, some of the newer businesses have no boards or small ones. In the case of StuDocu, there is a board of directors, but only one active member is serving on the board. Mathias Ockenfels is the sole member of the board of advisors. He joined the StuDocu team as an advisor in December of 2015 and has been there ever since. Ockenfels is a partner at Speedinvest. He currently serves in 14 board and advisory positions.

17. StuDocuhas made one acquisition

StuDocu acquired Unybook on August 1st of 2018. Unybok is a company that has developed an online platform that purchases the best possible notes for top university students. The company is located in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Details of the purchase and agreement have not been disclosed. The sale price is not yet known.

18. StuDocu offers a rewards plan for inviting others

According to Ed Surge, Students who subscribe to the premium version of StuDocu are offered a host of different rewards for inviting other students to join. In addition, they obtain one hundred percent access to all of the documents in the catalogs. they may also upload and download as many documents as they desire. There are also in-app upgrades and one-time content offers. The free version provides viewing access to eighty percent of the documents that are contained in the StuDoc database. They may upload as many documents as they desire. If free version members invite other people to join, they may also receive rewards for bringing in others. StuDocu’s products are accessible through a web browser. The platform has also been optimized for mobile browser access.

19. StuDocu is currently hiring

According to its LinkedIn page, StuDocu has seven open positions advertised. So far, before new hires are made, 54 people are working for the company. All of the positions open are for candidates who either live in Holland or who are willing to relocate to the area. They’re going local to increase the size of their workforce. This is evidence that StuDocu is getting ready to expand its size and its operation. The posts were made approximately one week ago, so they’re recent. One is for a US Market Lead, working out of Amsterdam. Another is for a Strategy Manager, Tech Recruiter, Frontend Developer, Financial Controller, Senior Growth Hacker, and UX/UI Designer.

20. StuDocu is not listed on any public stock exchanges

At this time, StuDocu is a privately held company. The leadership has not made any mention of the possibility of filing for an IPO in the near future. You won’t find StuDocu listed on any of the world’s stock exchanges or selling its shares. So far, the enterprise has done well enough with the venture capital funding it has raised through a series of three funding rounds. It is still privately owned with no outstanding shares of stock available for purchase. It is still a company that merits watching as StuDocu offers relevant products throughout the world and it’s getting ready to expand services yet further. It’s still a young company but it is showing signs of growth as we speak. It has the potential for emerging into one of the leaders in the Ed Tech industry if it stays on its current trajectory.

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