Saud Siddiqui and Andrew Berg said they shared an uncommon way of studying for their classes at UC Irvine School of Medicine.

To memorize and recall information quickly, the duo would weave information from their subjects into personal stories.

“We realized that we stumbled upon this way of learning that was effective, and that really cracked the code for us in medical school,” Siddiqui said. “We wanted to share that with others.”
 
While still in school, Siddiqui and Berg turned their memory- and symbol-based approach to learning into an education technology business, founding Sketchy Group in West Los Angeles in 2012.

In its nine-year history, the company, which is focused squarely on medical concentrations, has garnered 300,000 users and claims to reach 77% of all medical students in the country.
 
Now Sketchy plans to grow by opening its tools to undergraduates. In August, it launched a platform to help students prepare for the Medical College Admission Test. The product, which is available through the company’s website, features 110 video lessons on MCAT topics, including biology, biochemistry and physical sciences.
 
“We tap into the brain’s inherent ability to remember familiar spaces, and one step further, to remember story,” said Siddiqui, who serves as the company’s chief executive.
 
Using the Loci method, Sketchy teaches students using layered, narrated and illustrated scenes that reinforce concepts by attaching them to memorable symbols within the scene. The service later tests students’ abilities to recall that information using online quizzes, Siddiqui said.

“We create familiar spaces or scenes for students, and we place characters, symbols and objects along that space that are weaved together in the story and attach information to each of these objects,” he said. “So later, they would be able to close their eyes and walk through the scene and recall what was there.”
 
In September, Sketchy received a $30 million majority-stake investment from Playa Vista-based investment firm Chernin Group to help scale its product development and growth. The company has a total of $33 million in funding between two rounds.
 
The funding has enabled Sketchy to open an in-house animation studio and to expand to more subjects. And two months after the initial funding announcement, Andrew Sugarman, former executive vice president and global head of digital media at Walt Disney Co., joined the company as its president.

“Our referencing on the impact Sketchy has on medical school students blew us away,” Mike Kerns, partner at Chernin Group, said in a statement. “That passion for a learning product combined with Sketchy’s unique approach to visual storytelling make this a compelling investment as we work with the company to expand to other segments of education.”

The company offers lessons for several medical concentrations, including surgery, pharmaceutical and OB/GYN.
The product costs between roughly $150 and $600, with usage periods ranging from three to 24 months.

The company said usage of its lessons has grown by more than 50% since the start of the pandemic. Sugarman attributes this to the Covid-induced demand for digital learning tools and the increased interest in medical professions among students. Medical school applications increased 18% year over year in 2020, the company said.
 
“Ed tech has benefited in many ways from the pandemic,” Sugarman said. “It has really shone a light on the importance of technology and how students learn, whether it’s K through 12 or higher ed.”
 
Now Sketchy is eyeing a larger headquarters in L.A. to accommodate its growing staff, which doubled over the past year to more than 50.
 
“We envision that to continue to grow at a similar pace over the next six months,” Sugarman said.