Meet Connie Zhang | Co-founder & CEO of mocaa.com

We had the good fortune of connecting with Connie Zhang and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Connie, how did you come up with the idea for your business?
My partner Kerry and I came up with the idea of a matchmaking edtech marketplace when we were in school. During a coffee break between classes, we saw a group of incoming students networking with the admissions team, and we jokingly said “Definitely don’t miss that.” This was the beginning of a conversation that led to our realization that the education industry is due for an upgrade.

Based on our own experience, we identified the biggest issue in education is the college application process. Not all applicants have the same resources in mentorship. Thus, many students struggle to get into the right school, and it takes longer to identify their career path. Together, Kerry and I went on a mission to minimize the global education gap and improve the overall education quality worldwide.

We were once students and previously struggled through the college and graduate school application process. Being once the customers in this market, we have experienced the solo application process, the collaboration with a poor quality advisor, and the experience with a fitted advisor. Because of these experiences, we sought to pioneer a new journey for future students. We believed that no one else should ever experience the same level of stress as they had. Pursuing education should be fun and exciting for students. Students shouldn’t have a painful journey as they embark on a new chapter of their lives.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I am the co-founder and CEO of mocaa.com. Mocaa stands for Marketplace Online for College Admissions Application. As the name speaks for itself, it is an online platform that connects students with college advisors for any application help. We became a beacon of hope for students to find quick access to college admissions resources. Its matchmaking algorithm matches students and college advisors based on their profile data. Student to student, we know our customer’s pain. Pursuing education is a right, not a privilege. Understanding this fundamental value is how we successfully established Mocaa’s brand.

Since its launch earlier this year, Mocaa has generated over 140 college advisors (vetted from 1,000 advisor applications received) from world-class universities, and over 170 students signed up. Mocaa was recognized by Collision Conference as an impact startup in June 2022. Mocaa was also nominated as the top edtech startup of the year by multiple publications (WorldFestival, Edutech, Technology Innovators). One of our biggest successes would be joining the 2022 cohort with Newchip Accelerator and Batchery Accelerator. The journey in edtech is far from easy, but it’s necessary for someone to step up and find ways to improve the current system. We are grateful for all the help we receive from our mentors.

My partner Kerry and I came up with the idea of a matchmaking edtech marketplace during our time at the University of Cambridge. During a coffee break, we saw a group of incoming students networking with the admissions team, and we jokingly said “definitely don’t miss that.” This was the start of a conversation that led to realizing the education industry is due for an upgrade.

Studies show that 48% of Americans are dissatisfied with U.S. education (Gallup, 2022). Based on our own experience, we identified the biggest issue in education is the college application process. Not all applicants have the same resources for application guidance. Thus, many students struggle to get into the right school and take longer to identify their career path. Together, Kerry and I went on a mission to minimize the global education gap and improve the overall education quality worldwide.

We were once students and previously struggled through the college and graduate school application process. Being once the customers in this market, we have experienced the solo application process, the collaboration with a poor quality advisor, and the experience with a fitted advisor. Because of these experiences, we sought to pioneer a new journey for future students. We believed that no one else should ever experience the same level of stress as we had. Pursuing education should be fun and exciting for students. Students shouldn’t have a painful journey as they embark on a new chapter of their lives.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Southern California is an interesting place where you could drive 2 hours north to snowboard and 2 hours south to go to the beach. The temperature is usually never too cold or too hot, and the restaurants are arguably some of the best in the nation. Depending on which season you visit, you may be able to do it all.

I’ve heard from many people that LA has the best Korean BBQ restaurants in the world. It’s definitely worth visiting one of the top Korean BBQ spots when you are in town. We also pride ourselves on the taco trucks. You can find them throughout the cities in LA. Taco trucks are not only affordable but they also open until 1-2 AM.

On the side of the state, the Orange County has many breweries if you are interested in doing a day of beer hopping. Some famous cities include Laguna, Newport Beach, and Irvine. Outside the cities, California is surrounded by many beautiful national parks. Some of the must-visit ones are Joshua Tree, Yosemite, Sequoia, and Lake Tahoe. I often go camping with friends on the weekend. It’s a good way to catch up and do a quick tech cleanse. If you are working from home, camping for a weekend with friends will reset your body clock and bring back balance to your life.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’d like to dedicate my shoutout to Mocaa’s advisors who have been guiding us along the entrepreneurial path. Kerry and I started Mocaa as a research project back at the University of Cambridge. We wanted to help future generations, but we knew we couldn’t do it alone.

We started building mocaa.com during the pandemic. It wasn’t easy, and we knew we needed experts’ mentorship in order to succeed. We are grateful to have connected with many talented industry professionals who share the same passion. Our advisors mentored us throughout the journey and gave us clarity on how to achieve our goals. Together we have successfully launched a product that could change many students’ lives (and application results).

Website: https://mocaa.com

Instagram: @the.mocaa

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mocaainc/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mocaaplatform

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mocaaeducation/