Our Operating Principles
These aren’t aspirational values on a wall—they’re decision-making frameworks we use daily.1. Infrastructure Over Features
What Most Ed-Tech Does
Build proprietary features to create competitive moats: AI counselors, premium dashboards, exclusive content, subscription tiers
What Superadmission Does
Build open infrastructure that serves everyone: APAAR ID integration, algorithmic matching, real-time transparency, unified settlement
Features create competitive advantage. Infrastructure creates societal advantage. We chose the latter because India’s 35 million students deserve infrastructure-level solutions, not feature-level band-aids.
Real-World Application: The CollegeCult Pivot
Real-World Application: The CollegeCult Pivot
When we recognized that counseling features only addressed symptoms, we didn’t add more features—we pivoted to building infrastructure. This decision cost us short-term revenue but aligned with long-term impact.
2. Service Over Scale
We optimize for student outcomes, not user acquisition metrics.1
Principle in Action: Quality Gates
When CollegeCult reached 143+ students, we stopped intake mid-cycle instead of scaling to 500+. Why? Because quality matters more than quantity.
2
How This Applies to Superadmission
We’ll deploy pilots with 5-10 institutions before scaling to 100+. We’ll serve 10,000 students excellently before serving 1 million adequately.
3
What This Costs Us
Slower growth, lower valuation multiples, investor skepticism. But we’re building for decades, not quarters.
3. Empathy Over Efficiency
Fast execution matters. But listening matters more.Aashrut's AFS Training
3+ years hosting international students taught: Different cultural contexts require different communication styles. One-size-fits-all doesn’t work for diverse stakeholders.
Unnati's Nonprofit Experience
Fundraising for educational nonprofits revealed: Communities know their problems better than we do. Our job is to listen, not prescribe.
- We conduct 20+ student interviews before designing features
- We run co-creation workshops with institutions before imposing solutions
- We engage government officials as partners, not obstacles
Building for 35 million diverse students across 28 states, 22 languages, and wildly different economic contexts requires deep stakeholder empathy—not just technical competence.
4. Transparency Over Opacity
Information asymmetry perpetuates inequality. We eliminate it.Current System: Opaque and Extractive
Current System: Opaque and Extractive
- Counseling centers charge ₹5,000-50,000 for “insider knowledge”
- Merit cutoffs only revealed after allocation
- Vacancy data hidden or outdated
- Students make blind decisions
Superadmission: Transparent by Design
Superadmission: Transparent by Design
- Real-time dashboards showing live vacancies
- Historical trend data for probability estimates
- Clear documentation of matching algorithm
- No information advantage for those who can pay
Some institutions resist transparency—it reduces their control. But we’re building for students, not institutions’ comfort. Transparency is non-negotiable.
5. Collaboration Over Competition
We don’t win when competitors lose. We win when students win.Proprietary Mindset (What We Reject)
Build walled gardens, create switching costs, lock in users, maximize LTV, defend market share
DPI Mindset (What We Embrace)
Build open protocols, enable interoperability, serve entire ecosystem, create public value, invite co-builders
When other ed-tech founders ask about our Gale-Shapley implementation, we share openly. Why? Because if they build better admission systems, students benefit—which is our ultimate goal.
6. Long-Term Over Quick Wins
Reforms happen on decade timelines, not quarter timelines.1
Q1-Q2 2025: Patient Pilots
5-10 institutions. 10,000 students. Deep iteration based on feedback. No premature scaling.
2
2025-2027: Institutional Buy-In
50-100 institutions. Government alignment. NEP 2020 integration. Building trust slowly.
3
2027-2030: State-Level Deployment
5+ states. 1 million+ students. Proven track record enables scale.
4
2030-2035: National Infrastructure
All 1,113 universities. All 43,796 colleges. 35 million annual students. DPI achieved.
7. Equity Over Extraction
Technology should level the playing field, not tilt it further.- The Problem We're Solving
- Our Equity Commitment
- Why This Costs Us
Current system perpetuates inequality:
- Urban students have access to coaching, counselors, insider networks
- Rural students face information barriers, language barriers, resource constraints
- Wealthy families can afford ₹50,000 counseling packages
- Poor families make uninformed decisions that cost them opportunities
8. Data Sovereignty & Privacy
Students own their data. Always.APAAR ID Integration
Student identity managed via government DPI (APAAR), not proprietary databases. Students control consent and data sharing.
DigiLocker Verification
Documents verified via DigiLocker—no central storage of sensitive student data. Zero-knowledge architecture wherever possible.
Transparent Algorithms
Gale-Shapley matching logic fully documented. No black-box ML models making opaque decisions about students’ futures.
Regulatory Compliance
Full alignment with Data Protection Act 2023, NEP 2020, and Digital India principles. Privacy isn’t a feature—it’s a foundation.
In an era where ed-tech platforms monetize student data through lead generation and advertising, Superadmission takes the opposite approach: students’ data sovereignty is non-negotiable.
9. Government as Partner, Not Obstacle
DPI can’t happen without government alignment. Our Approach:- Engage early: Met Sanjeev Bikhchandani (InfoEdge), aligned with NEP 2020 timelines
- Speak their language: Frame Superadmission as policy implementation tool, not private venture
- Deliver value first: Demonstrate efficiency gains through pilots before requesting regulatory changes
- Patient timelines: Government moves slowly—that’s okay, we’re building for decades
Example: NEP 2020 Alignment
Example: NEP 2020 Alignment
NEP 2020 mandates Academic Bank of Credits and unified admission systems. Rather than fighting policy, we’re building policy implementation infrastructure—positioning Superadmission as how NEP goals get achieved.
10. Humility in Execution
We don’t have all the answers. We have a framework for finding them.Fail Fast, Learn Faster
CollegeCult was our first hypothesis. It failed to solve root causes. We pivoted—no ego, just learning.
Co-Create with Stakeholders
We don’t impose solutions. We prototype with students, iterate with institutions, validate with government.
Measure What Matters
Not GMV or user count. Student outcomes, error rates, stakeholder satisfaction. Truth over vanity.
Serve the Mission
Superadmission is bigger than us. If someone builds it better, we’ll support them. The mission is infrastructure, not ego.
How These Values Show Up Daily
When making decisions, we ask:- Does this serve infrastructure or just add features?
- Does this optimize for service quality or just user acquisition?
- Did we listen to stakeholders or assume we know better?
- Does this create transparency or preserve information advantage?
- Does this help competitors serve students or just help us beat competitors?
- Is this a quarter-driven decision or decade-driven decision?
- Does this advance equity or advantage those already privileged?
- Does this respect data sovereignty or treat students as products?
- Does this align with government partners or fight policy?
- Are we staying humble or getting overconfident?
Why These Values Matter for FYLS
The Future Youth Leadership Summit emphasizes ethical values, diplomatic engagement, and innovative thinking. Our operating values demonstrate:- Ethical Innovation: We chose equity over extraction, transparency over opacity
- Stakeholder Diplomacy: We treat government as partners, institutions as co-creators
- Long-Term Thinking: We measure impact in decades, not quarters
- Humility & Learning: We pivoted when wrong, listen before prescribing
Values-Driven Leadership
Young founders often prioritize growth over values. We believe values enable sustainable growth—and that values-driven entrepreneurship is the only kind worth building.FYLS will connect us with global leaders who share this belief—and help us refine these values through cross-cultural dialogue.