Have you decided on studying abroad? Are you concerned about having the right information and getting the right guidance? It is very important that you select your overseas education consultancy wisely. Education abroad can change your life and transform your career for the better. We are here to help you realise this dream.

At an early stage, you are bound to be confused about your study options abroad. We know how difficult a decision this is, which is why we’ve combined our technological and face-to-face resources to help you make the right choice. Contact us right away and we’ll offer the best guidance, free of cost.

Check out amazing ideas to plan your overseas education.

Any student with study abroad dreams will be curious about 2 aspects when it comes to overseas education consultancies:

• What are the services offered by the consultancy?
• How will it benefit you, to associate with a consultancy?

Here are our responses to these questions.

Services that we offer

1. Searching for the right university and course 

Through the Hotcourses ultimate search technology we match your grades, budget requirements and English language level with what you want to study and where you would like to study it, to produce a tailored set of results. In short, we will help you see which universities you can get into. We have the Course Matcher tool that exponentially speeds up your search for the right university and course. Answer a few questions and the tool will get you tailor-made results based on the criteria that matter to you. Learn more about the Course Matcher tool and do try it out for yourself!

2. Applying to universities

Our technology-based approach and partner agreements with universities means that we generate a response to your applications fast. We know how important it is to find out whether your application has been successful, which is why Hotcourses aims to get you an answer within 2 days to 2 weeks of your application submission.

3. Connecting with students abroad

Studying overseas is a huge decision and there is no better way to find out what it is like than talking to a student from your own country. We provide video chat sessions and webinars with university representatives at our partner universities so you can find out first-hand what it is like to study there.

You can also rely on the Ask IDP videos which are available on our site as well as on the app. You’ll be able to find video responses for some of the questions frequently asked by prospective international students.

4. Providing a platform for you to interact with other students

There are thousands of students heading from our country to study overseas. Students that rely on IDP for overseas education consultant services can make use of the Hotcourses Discussion Forum to raise their questions and concerns. Your peers or our experts will respond to your questions.

5. Getting you prepared

We provide IELTS Practice Tests on our site to help you test your English. We also help with budgeting as well as reviewing your Statement of Purpose and Letters of Recommendation to give you the best chance of a successful application.

6. Providing up-to-date information

Once you become registered with us, we will send updated information about the status of the application to your email. If you would prefer real-time updates, you can rely on our IDP Live app, which can be freely downloaded from Google Play Store or App Store. You have access to this information without the need to contact the counsellor.

7. Visa guidance

Visa is a crucial aspect of your study abroad journey. You should have up-to-date information about the visa requirements, the rules and regulations that are applicable to international students upon arrival in their destination country and about the work rights. Our overseas education consultants double as visa experts too, to provide visa guidance.

The advantage of meeting our visa advisors is that they’ll take you through mock interview sessions where you’ll get to know the easiest and toughest questions that could be asked to you by a visa officer and also how you should and shouldn’t answer certain questions. Our study visa interviews have been appreciated by many students.

8. Money matters, and we know that

In addition to information on courses and universities, we also provide scholarship information. Over 7000 scholarships are listed on our site, from institutions in destinations around the globe. You can filter the list based on your study level, subject and destination to find the best scholarships to apply to. You can always check with your counsellor for more information.

9. Arranging accommodation

Once you have decided which university to attend, we will help arrange your accommodation so that you have a place to stay before you leave your home country.

10. Support you even after you reach your destination country

Through our offices in the UK, Australia and the USA, we have local in-country representatives ready to help you with any issues should they arise once you have arrived at your destination.

How will it benefit you, to apply through us?

1. We simplify the journey to studying abroad

We've been helping students with finding the right course since 1996 and we work with over 400 universities around the world including those in the USA, the UK, Canada, New Zealand, Ireland & Australia.

We understand how difficult it can be for students to make sense of the entire overseas education process in a short time, without professional support. Therefore, we’ve put together a team of advisors across major cities in India to assist you at every stage of your study abroad journey.

Besides reaching us online, you can walk into our offices if you wish to meet your assigned counsellor and have a more detailed conversation about your education.

2.Ease of access; help is only a step away

It is easy to reach us. You just have to fill one of those forms that you can find across the site. As a virtual study abroad agency, our study abroad counsellors will interact with you through an online medium. They’ll collect relevant details like your preferred study intake, course and university and your estimated budget. Once they are done with the initial assessment of your profile, they'll help you find universities that align with your interests.

3.Personalisation – The results are tailor-made for you

Using our smart search technology and interactive tools, we match your grades, budget, preferred study destination and course and English language skills to offer you a tailored set of results.

We form a connecting link between you and the institutions abroad. To further help you with your search and decision-making process, we give you complete access to the world’s largest database of university profiles. The extensive database covers a wide range of courses offered by institutions in the UK, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Ireland.

You can browse through the detailed information listed on our website by over 5000 institutions worldwide and can make informed decisions about your education abroad.

Once you short-list your preferred universities, we'll help you apply to those universities.

4.Easy accessibility to guidance and information

We have a clear communication channel with our clients which has been further reinforced with our years of association. So, we have access to the latest updates from these institutions regarding rules, regulations and requirements. For example, some universities ask for more than one Letters of Recommendation. When you come to us, we’ll be able to tell you which universities ask for what kind of documents from students so that you waste no time procuring all the necessary documents on time.

Besides all these, you can reach us from any location because we aren’t bound to a particular city or state in India. Our virtual reach has helped us expand our services even to some students in Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

5.Keeping a close watch

Our job doesn’t end with sending over the applications to the universities that you shortlist. We’ll help you follow up with the admissions team and get a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ within a short time. When we act as a mediator between the university and you, the communication becomes an effective one. It also helps in building trust and confidence for both the applicant and the university.

6.Getting ready

Our visa advisors will give you all details about the study visa that you choose to apply for. You can check with them anytime to figure out if your chosen country’s PR rules are in line with your academic

As an established overseas education consultancy, you'll get the latest updates on studying abroad,n from us. Using our connections with various partners in the industry, we'll keep you informed about any changes in the admission process.

You can check with our counsellors to know more about our services. Also, do check out our international student news page for the latest updates from around the globe.

Thousands of students have successfully made it abroad and is living their dream. Now it is your turn. All the best for your study abroad journey.

Editor's note: This article was originally published in February 2016. We have included up-to-date information and made it comprehensive.