Online learning startup Coursera raises $64 mn in Series D funding; to expand higher degree portfolio

Online learning startup, Coursera has raised $64 million in a Series D funding round, taking the company's total capital raised to date to $210.3 million.The latest round will be used to fund efforts in its enterprise business to expand its master’s degree portfolio, and to accelerate product innovation.The majority of the funding for this round came from existing investors—GSV Asset Management, New Enterprise Associates (NEA), Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers (KPCB) and Learn Capital. The Lampert Foundation also participated as a new investor, the company said in a statement.“As the industry leader in online higher education, we have a massive opportunity ahead of us in preparing people, companies, and governments to respond to the changing nature of jobs and to take on the urgent challenges of workforce transformation. This round of funding enables us to continue innovating across our platform to deliver better learner outcomes, and to accelerate the momentum we have in our new initiatives — enterprise and degrees,” said Rick Levin, CEO.[caption id="attachment_2493190" align="alignleft" width="380"] AFP[/caption]The online education portal has begun offering fully-accredited online master’s degrees in order to serve the full spectrum of educational needs. Encouraged by the success of the first two degrees it launched in 2015, it recently announced two more degrees—a Master’s in Innovation and Entrepreneurship (OMIE) from HEC Paris, and a Master’s of Accounting (iMSA) from the University of Illinois.“In a global marketplace and knowledge-based economy, education makes the difference not only for how well an individual does, but for companies, and for that matter, countries,” said Michael Moe, Founder and CEO of GSV Asset Management.In January of this year, Coursera also launched Coursera for Governments and non-profits, joining forces with government and local institutions to prepare their communities for the jobs of the future. These partnerships have quickly scaled to cover efforts in a number of countries, such as the US, Pakistan, Egypt, Malaysia, and Singapore.