Draft:EQuest Education Group

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  • Comment: This is still just unambiguous advertising and promotion, it has been deleted three times before for that reason, this version is no improvement. Theroadislong (talk) 07:59, 23 May 2024 (UTC)
  • Comment: Mostly unreferenced, with no evidence of notability. DoubleGrazing (talk) 06:07, 12 April 2024 (UTC)

EQuest Education Group
FormerlyEQuest Academy
Company typePrivate
IndustryEducational and Training Services (B2C)
FoundedSeptember 1, 2003; 20 years ago (2003-09-01) in Hanoi, Vietnam
FounderNguyen Quoc Toan
Headquarters,
Vietnam
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Websitehttps://equest.vn/en/

EQuest Education Group (EQuest) is a private educational institution in Vietnam with member units organized into three divisions: K12 Education (K12), University and Vocational Colleges (C&U), Education Technology (EdTech), and English as a Second Language (ESL).

EQuest has successfully raised foreign capital from two investment and private equity funds: TAEL Partners (Singapore) and KKR (USA).

EQuest and other member units of K-12, as well as EdTech and ESL, were accredited by the three Cognia accreditation divisions.

Company History[edit]

Founding[edit]

Founded in 2003 as EQuest Academy in Hanoi, Vietnam, the institution initially provided services for students preparing to study abroad, including test preparation and assistance with study abroad applications. [1]

In 2007, EQuest Academy opened its first campus in Ho Chi Minh City and shifted its focus to the southern region.

In the fourth quarter of 2013, EQuest acquired shares of a foreign investment fund in the Institution of American Education (IAE). After the merger, the member units were restructured and operated under the IAE legal entity. Over the following three years, IAE merged VATC English Systems, several software companies, and schools[2]. In November 2019, IAE became EQuest Education Group (EQuest Group).

Important Milestones[edit]

EQuest Education Group began its journey in September 2003 as EQuest Academy, offering overseas study consulting services and student admissions support, including standardized test preparation for exams like TOEFL, SAT, GMAT, and GRE. The group diversified in May 2012 by founding iSMART Education, an educational technology company[3].

In December 2013, EQuest expanded its operations by welcoming VATC English learning centers, American Polytechnic College, and Broward College Vietnam as part of the group. By June 2016, the group included Saigon Polytechnic College and had iSMART operating licenses in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

In October 2016, EQuest secured Series A funding from Singapore's TAEL Partners, a private equity investor [4]. In March 2017, the company rebranded EQuest Academy as IvyPrep Education[2]. Subsequently, the group saw a series of educational institutions join its ranks: Phu Xuan University in April 2018, Alpha School in June 2018[5], Newton Grammar School in November 2018[6], and Victory Experimental School in January 2019[7].

Throughout 2019, iSMART expanded its reach by obtaining 14 operating licenses across the country, while the 789.vn platform became EQuest's 10th member in October of that year[8]. In November 2019, EQuest rebranded its holding company as EQuest Education Group and launched iTD Academy for teacher training and international examinations. The group continued its growth by adding Victory High School (formerly known as Dong Do High School) in December 2019 and Viet My Hanoi College in January 2020[9]

In April 2020, EQuest signed a strategic partnership agreement with Ivy Global School in the U.S. and became the major shareholder of the Hanoi Primary School for Educational Technology in May 2021. That same month, St. Nicholas School Da Nang became the 15th member of EQuest Education Group[10]. In June 2021, EQuest secured a $100 million investment from KKR[11]

Further expansion occurred in May 2022 when Happy School in Vung Tau joined the group. In July 2022, EQuest received accreditation from three divisions of Cognia, including North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA CASI), Northwest Accreditation Commission (NWAC), and Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS CASI)[12][13].

In December 2022, EQuest became a key shareholder and operator of the Canadian International School System in Ho Chi Minh City[14]. In May 2023, EQuest secured US$120 million in debt from an undisclosed creditor and equity funding from existing investor KKR[15][16][17][18][19].

In November 2023, EQuest received the ESG Impact Showcase award for its initiatives contributing to sustainable development[20][21]. In May 2024, EQuest continued its growth by adding Topica Global (Native and Edumall) to its ranks.

Operations[edit]

K-12 Education Division:[edit]

EQuest operates schools across Vietnam, providing international education programs alongside the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training curriculum. Notable schools include:

University and Vocational Colleges Division:[edit]

This division includes various educational institutions focusing on practical training in fields such as information technology and business. Notable institutions include:

Education Technology (EdTech) & English as a Second Language (ESL) Division:[edit]

Under the Blue Whale holding company, EQuest offers English language learning programs and educational technology solutions. Notable entities include:

  • iSMART Education
  • IvyPrep Education
  • MegaEdu
  • Blue Ocean
  • Topica Global (Native & Edumall)

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Chương trình khuyến học hấp dẫn từ EQuest Academy". Giáo dục Việt Nam (in Vietnamese). 2012-02-20. Retrieved 2024-05-31.
  2. ^ a b "Xu hướng học tiếng Anh mới và sự "biến mất" của EQuest và VATC tại 2 thành phố lớn". baodautu (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 2024-05-28.
  3. ^ "Hé mở bệ đỡ "khủng" phía sau Giáo dục ISMART khi liên kết dạy thêm với trường học". laodong.vn (in Vietnamese). 2023-09-17. Retrieved 2024-05-29.
  4. ^ Trí, Dân (2018-05-29). "Lần đầu tiên quỹ TAEL Partners đầu tư vào lĩnh vực giáo dục Việt Nam". Báo điện tử Dân Trí (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  5. ^ "IAE trở thành đối tác chiến lược của Hệ thống giáo dục Alpha School". Báo điện tử Tiền Phong (in Vietnamese). 2019-03-15. Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  6. ^ hanoimoi.vn (2018-11-20). "Tổ chức giáo dục Hoa Kỳ trở thành đối tác chiến lược của trường Newton Hà Nội". hanoimoi.vn (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  7. ^ "EQuest Education Group đầu tư 1 triệu USD vào Trường Thực nghiệm Victory". Giáo dục Việt Nam (in Vietnamese). 2020-06-10. Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  8. ^ "EQuest Education Group đầu tư vào nền tảng số hoá giáo dục 789.vn". baodautu (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  9. ^ "Tổ chức giáo dục EQuest đầu tư triệu đô vào Cao đẳng Kinh tế - Kỹ thuật Hà Nội". laodong.vn (in Vietnamese). 2021-01-14. Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  10. ^ "Thêm trường phổ thông là thành viên Tập đoàn giáo dục EQuest". Báo Giáo dục và Thời đại Online (in Vietnamese). 2021-05-28. Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  11. ^ VnExpress. "Global equity firm invests $100 mln in education platform EQuest - VnExpress International". VnExpress International – Latest news, business, travel and analysis from Vietnam. Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  12. ^ "Tổ chức giáo dục tư nhân Việt Nam đầu tiên đạt kiểm định Cognia". laodong.vn (in Vietnamese). 2022-07-25. Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  13. ^ Vietnam+ (VietnamPlus) (2022-07-26). "EQuest first private educational organisation in Vietnam accredited by Cognia". Vietnam+ (VietnamPlus). Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  14. ^ tphcm.chinhphu.vn (2022-12-05). "EQuest và Khôi Nguyên "bắt tay" mở rộng cơ hội tiếp cận giáo dục chất lượng cao cho học sinh". tphcm.chinhphu.vn (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 2024-05-07.
  15. ^ "Tech in Asia - Connecting Asia's startup ecosystem". www.techinasia.com. Retrieved 2024-05-20.
  16. ^ TheLEADER.VN. "EQuest nhận vốn 120 triệu USD sau khi thâu tóm Khôi Nguyên | TheLEADER". theleader.vn (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 2024-05-20.
  17. ^ Hoang -, Giang (2023-05-20). "EQuest raises $120mln from KKR". Nhịp sống kinh tế Việt Nam & Thế giới (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 2024-05-20.
  18. ^ VCCorp.vn (2023-05-19). "Tập đoàn giáo dục EQuest huy động thêm 120 triệu USD, nhà đầu tư nước ngoài sở hữu gần 70% cổ phần". cafef (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 2024-05-20.
  19. ^ "EQuest huy động thành công 120 triệu USD từ quỹ KKR". baodautu (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 2024-05-20.
  20. ^ "EQuest nhận giải thưởng ESG Impact Showcase vì những sáng kiến đóng góp phát triển bền vững". Tạp chí Giáo dục - Bộ Giáo dục và Đào tạo (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  21. ^ thanhnien.vn (2023-11-25). "EQuest nhận giải thưởng ESG Impact Showcase vì những sáng kiến đóng góp phát triển bền vững". thanhnien.vn (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 2024-06-05.