Win-win situation: Uniwunder and MLP cooperate on workshops for students

A cooperation where there are only winners? – Dresden-based startup Uniwunder and financial services provider MLP are making just that possible. While a team led by Nicolas Mesa and Matthias Auer started out as young founders in 2016 with the idea of providing students with free offers related to study support, continuing education, studying abroad, finance and starting a job, the financial company was looking for new strategies on the web to reach young people there. The paths crossed and by 2020 more than 37,500 students had already found their way to MLP workshops on important topics such as tax returns for students, Excel or “In 30 days to the thesis” via the Uniwunder platform hochschulinitiative-deutschland.de. Matthias Auer, shareholder and CTO of Uniwunder, explained in an interview why this is worthwhile for everyone involved.

Matthias, how did you come up with the idea of founding Uniwunder?

When we were students, we already had many ideas for offerings that could make students and graduates more successful. Good workshops on topics like Excel are rare, programs abroad are usually quite rigid, and university employees often simply don’t have the time for individual support around applications and careers. With hochschulinitiative-deutschland.de, we have developed a value-added platform for students that closes these gaps. We see ourselves as a supplement to the university. It is important to us that all the services provided by Uniwunder are free of charge for the students.

How did you get to know MLP?

I myself took part in an MLP workshop as a student. At that time, the company offered them primarily on a local level on a comparatively small scale. I immediately saw connecting factors for our platform. We were keen to include workshops in our portfolio, but faced the challenge of finding funding, lecturers and premises for them.

Even during the first joint discussions, it became clear that the whole thing could be a successful cooperation. MLP had already discovered the education segment to draw attention to itself – in recruiting and for its own consulting services. As early as 1999, MLP had founded a corporate university at which MLP consultants are qualified – also as a basis for workshops they give to students.

At that time, however, MLP was still not very active in the digital sphere, and certainly not on social media. That, in turn, was our strength. Today, MLP maps a large part of its workshop division on our platform.

What were the next steps?

Thanks to our collaboration, we were able to offer workshops at more than 60 locations in Germany in the very first year. That was a great success. We hit a nerve. The topic of “Tax returns for students” was particularly well received by the target group. Many students can deduct tuition fees and books and thus save a lot of money. But you have to know what to look out for in the process. This topic – not to be confused with tax advice – is still in our portfolio today.

Subsequently, we have further expanded the range of workshops on our platform. The issue of quality is particularly important to us. We collect feedback from all participants and are pleased to achieve an average of a good 4/5 stars. At the same time, of course, we also give feedback to our instructors.

In the meantime, we are also working with MLP on our second platform Talentagent.de. There, we offer graduates support in their search for their dream job and, in addition, the opportunity to have their application checked by experts and to take advantage of personal coaching.

That all sounds great – especially for students. Can you explain in a little more detail how your business model works? How does it pay off for you and MLP?

Sure! MLP has a minority stake in Uniwunder. The team takes care of the design of the MLP workshops as well as the corresponding lecturers, rooms, etc. We at Uniwunder reach potential participants through our platform and are compensated by MLP for this service. We now have over 50 percent brand awareness among students and have grown to over 25 employees.

Conversely, MLP benefits because the participants or users come into contact with the financial services provider for the first time through us and gain positive experience in the process. Many turn to MLP again directly after the workshop or later, when they are firmly established in their careers, for advice on financial matters.

I can well imagine that many established companies find it difficult to reach such young target groups. The realities of life and the media usage of the different generations are drifting further and further apart. Are you open to other companies that want to make workshops and offers available via your platforms?

Yes, anyone who is interested is welcome to contact us! It’s important to us that each partner’s offerings provide students with real added value. This could be workshops, study abroad programs, scholarships, counseling or job fairs, for example. We are not open to party themes.

What do you think it takes for cooperation between established companies and startups to work?

Trust plays a big role. From the very beginning, the team at MLP was intensely committed to working with us at eye level. We had contacts who believed in us and advocated for our ideas internally at MLP.

It is important for startups to know and accept the processes in established companies and not to fight windmills. There is usually a good reason why decisions sometimes take longer. However, it makes sense to always get involved and participate in meetings. In this way, you can recognize more quickly what is needed and, with a little luck as well as the right information, you can help to shorten processes.

Contact:

Website: uniwunder.com

LinkedIn: Matthias Auer