Cohortpay was launched by its co-founders Mark Fletcher and Paul Jones with the sole purpose of decreasing the cost of tuition for international students. Collectively, the co-founders have over 30 years' experience specialising in foreign exchange markets with domestic retail and international investment banks.
Tuition fees represent a significant amount of money for many international students. Extreme volatility in FX rates, particularly the soaring Aussie dollar, coupled with high margins and fees does nothing to decrease the stress on students and their families when trying to budget for fee payments. We decided that it was time for someone to act in the interests of the students themselves, not the banks' shareholders. By aggregating payments, we can significantly reduce the cost of international education for our friends, our friends' friends and the entire international student cohort. Hence, the birth of "Cohortpay".
Tuition fees represent a significant amount of money for many international students. Extreme volatility in FX rates, particularly the soaring Aussie dollar, coupled with high margins and fees does nothing to decrease the stress on students and their families when trying to budget for fee payments. We decided that it was time for someone to act in the interests of the students themselves, not the banks' shareholders. By aggregating payments, we can significantly reduce the cost of international education for our friends, our friends' friends and the entire international student cohort. Hence, the birth of "Cohortpay".
You will save up to $1,000 a year with us! Individually, students are treated as retail customers of the traditional banks and currency transfer houses and are consequently charged excessively expensive foreign exchange rates and fees. However, collectively the international student cohort represents a market that should receive the benefits of pricing power when dealing with those same banks. Our innovative approach of bringing students together and effectively group buying their tuition fees means that we can save you money.
We encourage you to compare the cost of your tuition using our service with your usual channel.
We encourage you to compare the cost of your tuition using our service with your usual channel.
Absolutely! In fact we highly encourage it. We are tired of these large organisations getting comfortable with their position and then acting solely in their shareholders' interests. By definition, that means you lose out. We encourage everyone to test drive us against any other provider. WE WILL SAVE YOU MONEY!
Go on, try us out and see how much you will save.
Absolutely. The market for international students in Australia is diverse. The more students that use our service, the greater the discount we can get for all. This means more savings to you. If you do not see your institution on this site, simply email us at [email protected] and we will upload your school/TAFE/English language college, etc.
Absolutely. We are happy to accept part-payment of fees. Our minimum payment is the equivalent of A$1,000.
For an average undergraduate degree, you will save close to $1,000 per year. The amount you save will depend on the cost of your course. A medical student, for instance, could save in excess of $2,000 per year.
We charge no fees for our service. Your foreign bank may charge a small fee for your transfer to us, but we will ensure you pay no more fees as the money travels through the system. We know that bank fees are a pain for all. The only way we can eliminate the fees on your side is to establish an account domiciled in your home country. We plan to do this for all currencies and expect this to be complete by the start of 2013. This will eliminate any wire/TT fees as it will simply be a domestic payment in your home currency.
We currently support 14 currencies: CAD, CHF, DKK, EUR, GBP, HKD, JPY, NOK, NZD, SEK, SGD, THB, USD and ZAR. We are working hard to increase this list so that more international students can save.
Making a payment is a simple 3 step process:
1. Once you receive your tuition invoice, login to our website and navigate to the Make Payment page. Enter your invoice details and we will advise you how much your AUD fees will cost in your home currency. When you confirm the transaction, we will immediately email you instructions for paying the amount in your home currency.
2. Follow the instructions we give you to pay your fees in your home currency. The easiest way to make the transfer happen is through your internet banking, however you can always send the instructions home for your family to make the payment in a branch.
3. Leave the rest to us. When we receive your payment, we will ensure that it gets to your university in no more than 72 hours. You can track your tuition payment the whole way with Cohortpay. If you ever have any problems you can contact us, we're here to help!
1. Once you receive your tuition invoice, login to our website and navigate to the Make Payment page. Enter your invoice details and we will advise you how much your AUD fees will cost in your home currency. When you confirm the transaction, we will immediately email you instructions for paying the amount in your home currency.
2. Follow the instructions we give you to pay your fees in your home currency. The easiest way to make the transfer happen is through your internet banking, however you can always send the instructions home for your family to make the payment in a branch.
3. Leave the rest to us. When we receive your payment, we will ensure that it gets to your university in no more than 72 hours. You can track your tuition payment the whole way with Cohortpay. If you ever have any problems you can contact us, we're here to help!
No. We only accept payment via telegraphic transfer. Receiving payment via credit card is very expensive, which would negate the benefits we would otherwise pass back to you.
We can assure you that we will deliver more value to you than your credit card reward program!
We can assure you that we will deliver more value to you than your credit card reward program!
Typically, banks receive significant numbers of unanticipated inward payments every day. It is often very difficult for the banks to reconcile these payments and apply them to the appropriate beneficiary in a timely manner. Given that we are only receiving payments that have been completed on our platform, it is very easy for us to identify and apply those payments to the appropriate institution.
Delays outside of our control can still be experienced from the bank in your home country before these funds reach our account. This is why we suggest ensuring there is at least two weeks' gap between when you pay your fees and the due date. Invariably the process will take significantly less than this, but we prefer to take the side of caution. Once the funds hit our accounts, your institution can be paid the next day.
Delays outside of our control can still be experienced from the bank in your home country before these funds reach our account. This is why we suggest ensuring there is at least two weeks' gap between when you pay your fees and the due date. Invariably the process will take significantly less than this, but we prefer to take the side of caution. Once the funds hit our accounts, your institution can be paid the next day.
The founders of Cohortpay have approximately 30 years of experience within the financial markets and banking industries. We know what we are doing and we are well respected within the industry. We do not process any actual transactions on the website, so we do not require you to divulge your banking details.
We use CBA, one of the world's leading banking institutions, to fulfill our transactions. From the moment your money arrives with us, until it is remitted to your educational institution, your funds are held with CBA.
Our internal compliance procedures have been modelled on those of one of the most risk-averse banking institutions in Australia. We follow them rigorously - that's just the way we work.
In short, you can be very comfortable that any tuition fees you pay through Cohortpay will arrive at your educational institution in a swift and efficient manner.
We use CBA, one of the world's leading banking institutions, to fulfill our transactions. From the moment your money arrives with us, until it is remitted to your educational institution, your funds are held with CBA.
Our internal compliance procedures have been modelled on those of one of the most risk-averse banking institutions in Australia. We follow them rigorously - that's just the way we work.
In short, you can be very comfortable that any tuition fees you pay through Cohortpay will arrive at your educational institution in a swift and efficient manner.
We will collect personal information only for the purpose of providing our service to you. We collect personal information, such as names, addresses, email addresses, student identification, nationality and phone numbers. We do not require you to divulge your banking details through our site. We do not sell, publish or give away your personal information without your permission.
If you have any questions or suggestions, please find our contact details here.