GradCab- an innovative platform for hassle-free study-abroad experience

 

 

Making the seamless switch from airport arrival to settling in as an international student in the United States can be a hellish experience if the process is not handled with a sense of urgency.

Between feeling your bearings in town, accessing campus resources- and connecting with the community, the dream of studying in America can easily turn joy into pain.

In comes “GradCab” – a groundbreaking innovation that is making a seismic statement in the way foreign students quickly adapt in the first hours of their stay in the US until acclimatisation is completed.

GradCab is a unique platform that coalesces all assistance and related services that a foreign student studying in the US will need, in one easily accessible location.

It is a high-tech yet simple application that substantially eliminates the physical and technical complexities that many foreign students face in pursuing graduate education in the US.

By deploying integrity-proof systems and channels, GradCab offers a solution that makes studying in the United States a wholesome experience.

The ultimate goal of GradCab is to ensure that no new student arrives alone or unsupported while building a trusted network where students help other students safely.

 

Identifying the Problem

GradCab was conceived after two high-rising software developers- Dr. Daniel Teye Ocansey, and Dr. Felix Tettey-Engmann observed a worrying trend accompanying new students who arrive in the United States.

The problems identified by these two innovators included: airport pickups, navigating campus services, finding essential resources quickly, safety concerns when asking strangers for help, and limited institutional visibility.

As a counteracting move, many students choose to email the Office of International Affairs, and their respective departments for help, and/or contact strangers on social networks like WhatsApp or Telegram groups.

Sadly, these methods tend to become high-risk ventures since they are unverified, untracked, not scalable and potentially unsafe.

 

What is GradCab?

Having diagnosed the problem, Dr. Daniel Teye Ocansey (Co-Founder and CEO), Dr. Felix Tettey Engmann (Co-Founder and COO) with Dr. Yogesh Kale (Advisor and Chief Technology Officer) applied themselves day and night to develop GradCab.

These three envisaged GradCab as a student-led volunteer assistance platform that connects: currently verified students (Volunteers) with incoming students (Participants) within the same university.

The platform allows incoming students to request transportation assistance, housing/settlement guidance, campus orientation, essential errands, and a chat- forum for community engagements.

All interactions occur inside the secure platform giving it an added layer of trustworthiness.

It must be emphasised as a precautionary note, however, that GradCab is NOT a ride-hailing service, nor a transportation company.

Neither is it a student employment platform, a replacement for university services, nor does it pay wages to students.

Instead, GradCab provides a structured and safe volunteer support system for arrival assistance.

 

How GradCab Works

A new student in the United States can hop onto the GradCab app using these simple and easy steps.

Participant (new student) registers using their university email or admission documents.

2. Volunteer (current student) registers as a verified volunteer.

3. Participant submits a request:

a. date, time

b. pickup location

c. help type

4. The system identifies best-fit volunteers.

5. One volunteer accepts the request.

6. Secure in-app chat opens.

7. Assistance is completed and confirmed.

That’s not the end, GradCab continues supporting participants with additional resources to help them settle into campus life.

GradCab’s Volunteer Model is designed in such a manner that only verified students who choose to assist new arrivals are assigned.

Also, participating students can request assistance during arrival and early settlement.

This model encourages peer volunteering while maintaining transparency, safety,

and compliance with international/domestic student regulations.

 

Potential Value to the University

GradCab not only serves to lift an enormous burden off the shoulders of new students, but also supports the University community by: providing safer arrivals for new students, especially international students; improving student satisfaction and sense of belonging from the moment students arrive

arrive on campus; and strengthen collaboration between students and the International Students Office, among others.

It is imperative to add that GradCab is designed to complement existing university support systems, not replace them.

When you install a GradCab app, you are assured that no money changes hands. There are also no strangers from the internet, just verified members of the same university community, looking out for each other.

GradCab- “arrive safely, belong instantly”.

 

By Ebow Hagan