Date: 12/06/2021
To: Dr. John Smith
President of The University of Toledo
From: Sarvesh Roy, Student of The University of Toledo
Subject: Proposal to set up a Web / App based Student Support Service
for overseas and out-of state students
Propose
To set up a web/app-based Student Support Service
Summary
I am a sophomore student at your esteemed university; a part of the Computer Science Dept at the Engineering College. I joined the institute in Fall 2019 and did my semester 1 as a remote learning student. I have been on campus since Jan 2022 and have experienced life as a foreign student in USA.
The past 12 months have been a real learning experience and I have felt the need for a support service for students like I who have relocated to the US for our education. I have thought about this service for a while and wish to propose the following
Introduction
Overseas students who join universities in the US are often overwhelmed by various new systems and facilities that they encounter here, which are different to the once they are used to. This makes their integration into the local community very stressful and often leads to students going into a shell or into demographic groups of their own.
The proposed service will help the students better acclimatise to the local conditions and will assist them in making them feel at home. Further the service will also assist overseas students who are on frugal budgets save costs. This service will make the University a very appealing prospect to future students.
A major portion of the offered services can and will benefit American out-of-state students who are usually resident in and around the campus.
This proposed service is expected to yield revenues that will not only support the execution team but will also generate a healthy bottom line. The idea is also a scalable one and can be replicated for other universities in the area with a minimal additional investment.
A two-pronged objective is served
A social cause wherein the overseas and out-of-state students are supported
A self-sustaining program that can employ a group of students with an on-campus option
Proposed Tasks
The following services are envisaged to be offered as a part of the start-up program. To be implemented in a phased manner
Networking at a local level
Assistance with meet and greet, airline tickets and joint travel for students and visiting families, local tours, consolidated visits to events locally
Local lodging assistance for out of campus options. To facilitate sharing arrangements
Group Medical Insurance for all students in parentship with a vendor
Trading platform for pre-used items like books, furniture, white goods
Sale of grocery and other products sourced from home countries in partnership with overseas vendors
Alumni network that can assist students with Co-op placements
Counselling and 24-hour helpline for issues that are typical to overseas students
Consolidated inward shipment of personal goods from different cities. Parents who would like to send items to their kids can consolidate their cargo on a fortnightly basis.
A host of other services will be added at a phase 2 level.
Proof of need (Budget)
The total number of students in our university is: 18,552
Number of overseas students: 1,270
Number of out-of-state students: 14.300
Number of countries from where we have students: 64
Average expenses per overseas student
Food and Groceries: US$ 3,000/= per annum (@ $300/= per month, 10 months)
Travel, tickets, courier: US$ 2,000/= per annum
Books: US$ 750/= per annum
Medical Insurance: US$ 1,250/= per annum
Total annual expenses per overseas student (relevant to our project): US$ 7,000/=
Hence for 1,270 students, the total annual spend is US$ 8,890,000/=
Average expenses per out-of-state student
Food and Groceries: US$ 4,000/= per annum (@ $400/= per month, 10 months)
Travel, tickets, courier: US$ 750/= per annum
Books: US$ 750/= per annum
Medical Insurance: not applicable as it is usually covered by their families
Total annual expenses per out-of-state student (relevant to our project): US$ 5,500/=
Hence for 14,300 students, the total annual spend is US$ 78,650,000/=
TOTAL spend: US$ 87 million (rounded)
Other areas like mutual trading in white goods, automobiles are not monetised at this stage
The Proof of Need is clearly demonstrated as…
The service has a potential to help over 15,000 students
The potential to make a saving on the total annual spend is clear
Revenues
Let us assume conservatively the following
The number of overseas students using our service is say 30% of the total so 381
The number of out-of-state students using our service is say 5% of the total so 715
So total students: 1.096/= (consider 1,100)
The revenue will be generated by the following lines
Membership to the service US$ 50/= per semester: US$ 110,000/= pa
A highly conservative revenue of only 1.5% on the
total annual spends of 1,100 students: US$ 1,305,000/= pa
TOTAL revenue estimated US$ 1,415,000/= pa
Revenues from other avenues like e-commerce options will add to this in the future
We assume a 30% variance on the revenue for our calculation as the idea is new and subject to variation due to several factors… Hence net revenue considered is US$ 990,000/=
Costs
The following costs are envisaged (rounded off)
Setting up costs: US$ 3,000/= one time
Development of Webpage and App US$ 30,000/= one time
Furniture, Computers and hardware US$ 8,000/= one time
Licensing and Legal fees US$ 5,000/= pa
Rent of 1,500 sq ft office US$ 24,000/= pa
Operational expenses – all utilities US$ 12,000/= pa
Pantry, Gasoline and other petty spends US$ 12,000/= pa
Staffing
Managers and Supervisors (2) full time US$ 150,000/= pa
Admin, HR and Logistics (2) full time US$ 80,000/= pa
Support Staff (16 students, 4 x 4 hours shifts) US$ 193,000/= pa
@ US$ 12/hr, 3 shifts, 21 days/month, 12 months/year
Night Support Staff (2 students, 2 x 4 hours shifts) US$ 36,000/= pa
@ US$ 12/hr, 2 shifts, 31 days/month, 12 months/year
Marketing and other incidental expenses US$ 24,000/= pa
Banking and Financial costs (estm. @ 2% of revenue) US$ 31,000/= pa
TOTAL anticipated cost per annum US$ 608,000/= pa
Profitability
Earning before Tax and Depreciation (EBITDA) is US$ 382,000/=
Timeline
The project can be implemented as per the following timeline
Evaluation of idea, DPR and Feasibility study : month # 1 & 2
Incorporation and legal formalities, Funding links : month # 3
Development of Web page and App : month # 3. 4
Renting of office, fit-out and buying infrastructure : month # 4
Staffing and HR : month # 3, 4
Start of Operations : month # 5
Investment needed
We need a funding of US$ 300,000/= to take care of the following:
Start-up, Incorporation, and legal costs
Costs needed to rent the office, do the fit-out and buy the infrastructure
Fund the first 3 months of operational expenses before the revenue streams are established
Results and Conclusions
The above proposal confirms the following:
Substantive support to overseas and out-of-state students
A potentially self-sustaining and profitable venture
Can support 20 students with Campus Jobs
Completely scalable depending on success rate
Can be replicated in other colleges
I realty hope you would like the above proposal and assist us in funding and establishing this service for the benefit of the student community. Please feel free to check with me for any other information you may need.
Best regards,
Sarvesh Roy
References
“UToledo Announces Spring Enrollment Numbers.” THE UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO, 4 Feb. 2021, news.utoledo.edu/index.php/02_04_2021/utoledo-announces-spring-enrollment-numbers-2.
UNDERGRADUATE INTERNATIONAL ADMISSION. www.utoledo.edu/admission/international/cost. Accessed 2021.
Cost of Living in USA for International Students. www.collegedekho.com/usa/average-cost-living. Accessed 2021.
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