Vibhav ParikhFounding team member of Fox Counsel Published On: Wednesday, July 27, 2016 Views 3966

Fox Counsel, is an online calculator that helps students estimate the cost of studying abroad and gives them their specific break-even period. Fox Counsel is a unique, not for profit venture and is built to ensure that students across India and the world make the correct financial decision.

The calculator lets students find the year they break-even using a financial algorithm (back-end system using the discounted payback period algorithm) along with the crucial loan payment schedules and expected salary ranges.

Fox Counsel is built uniquely. An individual in the USA and an individual in India would have different break-even years for the same university. This is because Fox Counsel uses a financial concept of opportunity cost and ensures that the output is as close to reality for the specific user.

Hence our tool/calculator is automatically tailored to the user.

An investment in education abroad is the single most expensive investment made by an individual/parent. But there is no device/tool to show how viable this investment is.

Hence, I developed a calculator that would give a user a quick and easy understanding of the expenses that goes with an education abroad and also show when the user would break-even.

The inspiration was to inspire students to make an informed decision.         

Risk is being alpha

With a small team, it is often difficult to ensure your product reaches the target audience effectively. With over 20 million international students, we have a huge target market to tap into. We have developed plans to grow on a step-up basis.

Nevertheless, we have ensured continuous growth in our path towards recognition. We aim to form networking nodes across countries who would, in turn, grow the calculations. With Quora, Fox Counsel has developed wide recognition across nations. We plan to leverage our network in other cities to ensure continuous growth in traffic.

Currently, Fox Counsel has not reached out to angels/investors for funding

My company runs on the fact that Brain Drain is a real phenomenon with more and more Indians travelling abroad for further studies. This has been proved time and again by research reports.

But, according to the founder, Vibhav Parikh, brain-drain is like a business life-cycle. Eventually, there will be a time when the cycle reverses. Also, the net number of graduates/post-graduates staying back in India is still positive.

My company does not have attrition control practices.

• Plays a sport
• Supports irrational thinking
• Employs Japan’s JIT (Just-in-time) manufacturing technique in real life

Every quality must bind to form a resonating character.

• Reddit – Recommend
• Duolingo – Recommend
• Uber/OLA – Recommend

I’m also a part-time carpenter and I would highly recommend real tools, such as – a drilling machine, hand saw, and some wood to cut into.

Reading books that relate to your professional field. Always gives you an edge.

No habit so erroneous that I would like to change.

• One tip to success:

To be honest, I wouldn’t know. I’m still on the first step.

• One mistake you believe every individual must avoid:

Obsession with ROI (Return on Investment). Entrepreneurs should not be thinking like Private Equity Principals or Angel Investors. Individuals should concentrate on how to achieve a positive ROI rather than the ROI itself. Returns can also be qualitative. A measure that cannot be measured

• One most important lesson that you have learnt till now:

“Time is money” is a famous quote everyone has heard of. But according to me, “Patience is a money multiplier.” Patience is a strong virtue. At a young age, it is wise to be aggressive and constantly in motion. But there must be patience in stages

• Ensure the most optimum output from the calculator
• Ensure pan-India acceptance and use of our calculator
• Tie-up with renowned counselors to ensure a wholesome experience for users

Be more ruthless. Let’s be honest, we don’t live in a pond. We live in an ocean filled with big sharks. Either be a shark or be part of a school of fish (least likelihood of being eaten).

• Getaway destination 101: Home
• Scuba Diving
• Any pub with a pint

Albert Einstein: “Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it… he who doesn’t… pays it” This quote is not widely known but in one line it encompasses everything one needs to know about money.