Study Abroad FAQ

Oxbrivy is an AI-powered study-abroad advisory platform run by Hornbill Publications. It helps students from India and across Asia discover international university programs, find scholarships they qualify for, draft application documents (SOP, LOR, CV, essays), track their applications, prepare for visa interviews, and get personalised guidance — all in one place. Think of it as having a knowledgeable study-abroad counsellor available 24/7 at a fraction of the cost.

Oxbrivy is designed for students planning to study abroad at the undergraduate, postgraduate, or PhD level. Whether you are just beginning to explore options or are in the middle of your application cycle, the platform adapts to where you are in your journey. It is particularly useful for students targeting universities in the UK, US, Canada, Australia, Germany, Singapore, and Ireland.

Oxbrivy is a powerful complement to human counselling, not a replacement. The AI can answer most questions instantly, generate documents, and match you with programs — tasks that typically cost thousands of rupees with a traditional counsellor. For complex personal situations, our Consultation feature connects you directly with a certified advisor. Every user — even on the Free plan — gets their very first Consultation free. Pro Tri-Monthly then includes 1 free Consultation session per period and Pro Annual includes 6 (₹1,999 value each).

Program details (fees, deadlines, requirements) are sourced from university websites and updated regularly via our ETL pipeline. However, university policies change frequently. Always verify deadlines, tuition fees, and admission requirements directly on the official university website or the course portal before submitting an application. Oxbrivy clearly labels AI-generated content and recommends independent verification for any decision-critical data.

Your data is stored securely on Supabase (enterprise-grade infrastructure with encryption at rest and in transit). We do not sell your personal data to any third party. Profile data (academics, test scores, preferences) is used solely to personalise your recommendations. You can request deletion of your account and data at any time by emailing ceo@oxbrivy.com. See our full Privacy Policy in the Legal section for details.

The AI Compass is your personal study-abroad intake advisor. When you first join, it asks you a structured series of questions — name, degree level, target field, preferred countries, academic background, test scores, and budget — to build a complete profile. Once your profile is complete, the Compass switches to free-form advisor mode where you can ask it anything about studying abroad and it will give advice tailored specifically to you.

Free plan users get up to 3 complete search sessions. Pro subscribers (Tri-Monthly and Annual) get unlimited Compass sessions. A "session" counts when you complete the intake and click "Show my matches."

Yes. You can update any part of your profile at any time from the Profile section (academics, test scores, preferences tabs). The Compass also updates your preferences in real time during any conversation — just tell it "I am now also considering Canada" and it will update your profile immediately.

The Compass switches to advisor mode once you have set at least your name, degree level, subject field, and target country. If it is still running the intake questionnaire, it means one of those four core fields is missing from your profile. Visit the Profile tab, fill in your Preferences (target level, fields, countries), and the Compass will open in advisor mode on your next visit.

Yes — once in advisor mode, the Compass can answer highly specific questions: comparing programs, checking your GPA against typical admits, calculating real costs, identifying your weakest application component, or timing your IELTS exam to meet a specific deadline. It uses your saved profile data to give personalised, not generic, answers.

Oxbrivy uses two recommendation engines working together. The first is a rules-based engine that filters the program catalog by your degree level, target country, field, test scores, and budget. The second is a generative AI engine (GPT-4o) that draws on its world-knowledge of universities to suggest programs beyond our catalog — including programs it knows are a strong fit for your specific profile. Both results are shown side-by-side on the Programs page.

Currently there are 67 active programs across 7 countries (US, UK, Canada, Australia, Singapore, Germany, Ireland). We are continuously ingesting new programs via our ETL pipeline. The generative AI recommendations draw from a much wider global pool — not limited to our catalog — so you will often see suggested programs from top universities that are not yet in our database.

Each program in your list is scored against your profile using our probability engine. "Reach" means your profile is below typical admits but the program is worth a shot. "Target" means your profile is well within the typical range. "Safe" means you are comfortably above the typical profile. The band is calculated from your GPA, test scores, and the program's known acceptance rate and requirements — but it is a guide, not a guarantee.

Yes. Every program card has a bookmark icon. Tap it to add the program to your Shortlist. From the Shortlist page you can see all your saved programs side by side. Shortlisted programs are also used as the target when you draft SOP or LOR documents.

This usually happens when your previous search used very specific filters (e.g. a country with no programs in the catalog, or a rare field combination). Click the "Clear" button in the search form — this resets the saved search filters. If you searched for Japan or Economics undergrad programs, note that these are not yet in the current catalog but will appear in the AI-generative recommendations section above.

Oxbrivy scores each of the 22+ scholarships in its catalog against your profile. The scoring checks hard eligibility criteria (minimum GPA, IELTS score, nationality restrictions) and soft signals (field overlap, target country match, deadline proximity, full-tuition bonus). Scholarships you are eligible for appear in the "Matches" tab, sorted by match strength.

The most common reason is that your English test score is not saved. All current scholarships require an IELTS score. If you have not added your IELTS (or TOEFL) to your profile, add it under Profile → Test Scores. If you do not yet have a score, the system will still show you scholarships as "potential matches" with a note to confirm eligibility once you have a score.

Yes. Each scholarship card has tracking buttons: Saved → Applied → Awarded. Your tracked scholarships appear in the "Tracking" tab. Set a reminder by noting the deadline — Oxbrivy will alert you 7 days and 1 day before the deadline via in-app notification (and email/WhatsApp if you have those enabled in Notification Preferences).

No. Oxbrivy helps you discover, track, and understand scholarships. Each scholarship card links directly to the official application page. The application itself is done on the scholarship provider's website. Our AI can help you draft scholarship essays and personal statements via the Documents feature.

From the Documents page, choose the document type (SOP, LOR, Resume, or Essay) and a target program. Oxbrivy then uses GPT-4o to draft a personalised document using your saved profile data — your academic background, work experience, target field, career goals, and the specific program's requirements. The result is a tailored first draft, not a generic template.

This is a valid concern. Oxbrivy follows a "5 self-discovery prompts" approach — the AI asks you questions about your motivations, experiences, and goals before drafting. The output is based on your own words and story, which significantly reduces AI-likeness scores. You should always review, personalise, and edit the draft before submitting. The Documents editor shows a critique panel that scores your document on clarity, specificity, fit, grammar, structure, and voice.

Yes. Every time you generate a draft, refine, or make edits, a new version is saved automatically. You can see the full version history in the document editor and revert to any previous version. Versions are labelled by source (AI draft, AI refinement, manual edit) and timestamp.

After generating a document, you can click "Get critique." Oxbrivy uses GPT-4o to review your draft and score it on 6 axes: Clarity, Specificity, Fit (to the program), Grammar, Structure, and Voice. It provides both strengths and specific improvement suggestions. This is available for Pro subscribers.

Yes. From Profile → Import CV, paste your resume text. Oxbrivy's AI (Claude Haiku) parses it and extracts your academics, test scores, and work experience, then pre-fills your profile. You can review and confirm each field before saving. This saves significant time in completing your profile.

Once you apply to a program (via the "Apply" button on a program detail page), Oxbrivy creates an application record for you. It automatically generates a checklist of tasks: complete profile, upload transcript, upload test scores, draft SOP, collect LOR, pay application fee, submit. You can mark tasks as to-do, in-progress, or done. The Applications page shows a Kanban pipeline view of all your applications by status (Draft → Submitted → Under Review → Decision).

The Vault is your secure document storage for supporting files — passport copy, transcripts, test score reports, financial documents. Files stored in the Vault can be attached to any application without re-uploading. The Vault uses Supabase Storage with owner-only access — only you can see your files.

Oxbrivy updates your application status to "Submitted." From there, status changes (Under Review, Accepted, Rejected) are tracked manually — you update the status yourself when you receive communication from the university. Future versions will support automatic status updates via email parsing.

Oxbrivy provides detailed visa playbooks for the most common student visas: US F-1, UK Student Visa, Canada SDS (Student Direct Stream), Australia Subclass 500, and Germany Type D Student Visa. Each playbook includes a document checklist, step-by-step process guide, interview tips, and common mistake list. More countries will be added over time.

The Mock Visa Interview is an AI-powered practice session that simulates the real visa interview. The AI asks you country-specific questions (typically 5 questions for a standard session) — covering study plans, financial capability, ties to home country, and post-study intentions. After you complete the session, you receive a scored feedback report with strengths, weaknesses, and specific areas to improve. This is available for Pro subscribers.

No. Visa decisions are made exclusively by the respective country's immigration authority. Oxbrivy provides guidance and practice to help you prepare, but cannot influence or predict actual visa outcomes. Always verify the latest requirements on the official embassy or immigration department website.

Oxbrivy offers three plans: Free (₹0 — limited AI sessions, 1 search result, and your first Consultation free), Pro Tri-Monthly (₹2,999 every 3 months — full access to all features plus 1 free Consultation session per period), and Pro Annual (₹7,999/year — all Pro features plus 6 free Consultation sessions worth ₹1,999 each). Additional Consultation sessions can also be booked for ₹1,999 each.

All major credit and debit cards, UPI (Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm), net banking, and popular wallets — powered by Razorpay. Payments are processed securely; Oxbrivy does not store card details.

You can cancel the auto-renewal of your subscription at any time from Settings → Billing. Your access continues until the end of the current billing period. For the Annual plan, refunds are available only if you cancel during the free trial period before the subscription charge is processed. Once charged, subscriptions are non-refundable for the current period. See our Refund & Cancellation Policy for full details.

Everyone gets their first Consultation free — no subscription required. Just open the Consultation page from the sidebar and book; the page shows how many free credits you have remaining. Pro subscribers get additional credits each billing period (Tri-Monthly 1, Annual 6) on top of that first free session. Each booking uses one credit; once your credits are used up, further sessions can be booked at ₹1,999 each. Each consultation is a 45-minute 1:1 video/voice call with a certified study-abroad advisor.

If you invite 3 friends to sign up on Oxbrivy, you earn a free trial session with full Pro access for one complete browsing session. The trial is session-based — it is active while your browser tab is open, and ends when you close the browser. To invite friends, go to Settings → Invite Friends.

You can sign in with email + password, or use a 6-digit OTP (one-time passcode) sent to your email or phone. The OTP method is passwordless — no password to remember. Both methods are secure and use Supabase Auth.

Yes. Oxbrivy has a dedicated mobile app for iOS and Android (Expo-based React Native). The mobile app supports the full Compass chat, program browsing, scholarship discovery, application tracking, and push notifications. Look for "Oxbrivy" on the App Store and Google Play (coming soon), or scan the QR code shown during sign-up.

To delete your account and all associated data, email ceo@oxbrivy.com with subject "Account Deletion Request" from your registered email address. We will process the deletion within 30 days. Payment records are retained for 7 years as required by Indian tax law; all other personal data is permanently deleted.

Use the Feedback option in Settings to submit a rating and description. For urgent issues, email ceo@oxbrivy.com or WhatsApp +91 99537 46939. We read every piece of feedback and prioritise fixes based on frequency and severity.