CRI worked as an Industry Consultant in the listing of Wah Fu Education Group Ltd (NASDQ: WAFU). Wah Fu Education Group Ltd. provides online exam preparation services and related technology solutions and also produce online training course materials in China and have been in operation for nearly 17 years.
According to CRI, the online education industry (which generated an aggregate of RMB 156 billion in 2016) is divided into the online adult education sector (which generated an aggregate of RMB 89.7 billion in 2016) and others (which generated an aggregate of RMB 66.3 billion in 2016). The online adult education sector includes the non-academic education sector (which generated an aggregate of RMB 48.5 billion in 2016) and the online adult academic education sector (which generated an aggregate of RMB 41.2 billion in 2016). Online adult academic education can be further divided into the online self-taught higher education sector (which generated an aggregate of RMB 23.4 billion in 2016) and others (which generated an aggregate of RMB 17.8 billion in 2016). Online self-taught higher education is divided into the B2B2C sector (which generated an aggregate of RMB 543.3 million in 2016) and others (which generated an aggregate of RMB 22.86 billion in 2016).
China’s online self-taught education sector has been growing quickly as Internet technology continues to develop in China. The cost of providing online self-taught educational services is much lower than that of offline classrooms, and this has fueled the transition of self-taught education in China from offline classrooms to online classrooms. The market size of China’s online self-taught education industry reached RMB 23.4 billion in 2016, with the compound annual growth rate (“CAGR”) up to 22.2% from 2012 to 2016. China Research and Intelligence Co., Ltd. (“CRI”), a leading independent company providing industry/market research reports for initial public offerings and mergers and acquisitions in China, forecasts the market size will achieve RMB 41.24 billion in 2021, representing a CAGR of about 12% between 2017-2021.
Driving Forces and Opportunities for the Industry
| ● | Cost and Technology Advantages: Universities and colleges are not required to invest in online platforms through the B2B2C service. Recruiting and daily management of students and online courses are maintained by third party platform suppliers. This convenience attracts more universities and colleges to our market. |
| ● | Demand for Education Degrees from Recruiting Market: Companies seek employees with higher education degree as the economy and society develops. The enrollment requirements of self-taught examinations are low but the social recognition is high so the market is full of potential. |
| ● | Promotion of “Internet Plus”: The Chinese government’s development and promotion of its “Internet Plus” policy has improved cloud service technology in China, resulting in greater efficiencies in the online education industry, such as the improvement of the online grading systems used by companies in this industry. |
| ● | Elimination of Tier III Universities and Colleges: Since June 2015, the Chinese provincial governments have gradually eliminated the tier III category of universities and colleges and integrate them into the tier II category, which require students to obtain a higher score on their college entrance examinations. This may cause college acceptance rates to decline, as students with lower scores that would have been able to attend college prior to the elimination of the tier III category may no longer have the opportunity to do so. Consequently, more students may turn to the self-taught examination market in order to continue their education. |
| · | Internet Use: The number of Internet subscribers, especially mobile Internet subscribers, is increasing daily, which benefits companies that provide B2B2C services. |
| ● | Working Professionals’ Large Demand for A Second Education Degree: Certain majors are more popular with students than others. According to the statistics provided by the Ministry of Education of the PRC, the total number of graduates from the most popular 10 majors offered by universities and colleges in China, including accounting and law, was approximately 1.195 million, accounting for 15.7% of the number of all such graduates in 2016. The number of graduates majoring in each of the following majors (which also rank in the top 10 most popular majors in China) exceeded 100,000 in 2016: accounting, English, art design, civil engineering, computer science and technology (. Many graduates take jobs in areas that are different from the majors they studied. Some graduates may find their true interest after they get some working experience. Therefore, many people are eager to get a second degree through self-taught examinations in order to gain job promotions and salary improvement in China. We believe that due to this, the potential for the self-taught education market is huge. |
| ● | Online Courses by Qualified Teachers: Online self-taught education provides more opportunities for students to communicate with qualified teachers. Offline tutorial agencies for self-taught examinations are limited in teacher resources. It is very difficult for students to communicate with qualified teachers. Even though they provide such opportunities; the price may be very high. Online self-taught education guarantees higher coaching qualities through recording and replaying videos of qualified teachers, as well as the low cost to students. |
To understand more about the online education industry or IPO details, please feel free to contact us:
Eileen Gu
Email:info@cri-report.com
Tel: 86-21-6852 1029