How Sri Chaitanya is setting new milestones in India’s K-12 education space

In a country where academic success reigns supreme and a career in engineering or medicine dominates the professional aspirations of a majority of Indian families, it is not surprising to see the number of students appearing for competitive exams like JEE (Joint Entrance Exam) and NEET (National Eligibility Entrance Test).   

Reportedly, over 2.5 million students appeared for the entrance exams in 2020, including JEE Main, JEE Advanced, NEET etc. Also, in JEE Main 2020, reportedly 6 lakh students appeared in the September session, while over 8 lakh attempted the January session. Further, in 2019, over 10 lakh students appeared in April session, and 10,19,855 students attempted the January session. Reports also show that over 1.5 lakh students appeared in the IIT entrance exam — JEE Advanced in 2020, while 1,61,319 students attempted the 2019 session of the engineering entrance.

This has obviously seen the rise of coaching centres as a booming industry. But notwithstanding this, demand far exceeds supply in India when it comes to preparedness for competitive exams.  

This humungous need for coaching, coupled with the growing thrust on digital learning, a phenomenon further accelerated by the pandemic, has seen academic institutions like Sri Chaitanya rise up to the challenge and cater to the needs of Indians seeking quality education tuned to their professional aspirations, while being in sync with the realities of a digital India. 

In fact, galvanised by the lockdowns and the apparent demand for digital learning interface post pandemic among students, Sri Chaitanya Group of Institutions (SCGI) was among the first to launch an online platform for K12 students through it edtech subsidiary Rankguru Technology Solutions Pvt Ltd. The initiative resonates with the stated mission of the institution, which is to empower each child with dynamic teaching methodologies. It also reflects the nimble manner in which SCGI has adapted itself to changes and focused on technology aided education.

A journey with a mission 

Founded in 1986 by Dr B.S Rao and his wife Dr. Jhansi Lakshmi Bai Boppana, SCGI has over the years positioned itself as a one-stop destination for IIT-JEE mentoring, while focusing on holistic development of children. Within a span of 25 years, the group emerged to become Asia’s largest educational group. According to a report by The Education World, 125 of the top 1,000 scoring students in the open (Merit category) of the IIT-JEE Advanced Exam 2021, including ranks 1, 8 and 10, were from SCGI, and of the Top 100 in all categories, 71 were SCGI students. Similarly in the NEET 2021 examination, 9 of the Top 20 and 23 of the Top 100 were from SCGI.   

When the founders set up the institution in Vijaywada back then, the vision was simply to enable equal education opportunities to girl children, grooming them for engineering and medicine courses. They set up the Sri Chaitanya Mahila Kalasala (junior college) in 1986, prompted by the low percentage of girls securing admission into good engineering and medical colleges. It was started with 87 girls. The humble beginnings soon leapfrogged into one of the largest educational chains in Asia. What gave SCGI its edge was its consistent focus on recruiting highly qualified, good quality teachers, compensating them well and having a low teacher pupil ratio to facilitate individual attention to students. The SCGI model has in fact now emerged as a popular and respected one in Andhra, Telangana and Karnataka, particularly in the area of coaching for IIT-JEE entrance exams. 

Recognising the initiatives of SCGI founder Dr Rao, Education World conferred on him the Lifetime Achievement in Education Leadership Award in 2015. In the last 36 years, 750 SCGI institutions have sprung up, obviously prompted by a rising number of Indians seeking to groom their children for competitive engineering and medical entrance exams. Reportedly, 321 ‘SCGI Techno Schools’ currently provide K-10 education to 400,000 students, facilitated by 9,000 teachers.

Today SCGI stands poised to usher in new milestones in education, already all set to reach 1 million subscribers by 2023 for its online learning platform Infinity Learn. And there’s no stopping it.