The SP Jain Group has acquired California Miramar University (CMU), which will allow the group that runs business schools to offer artificial intelligence-related master’s and bachelor’s programmes to global students. The process to acquire the university had started in November last year and the all-cash deal is now through, SP Jain Group president Nitish Jain told ET over a virtual interaction.
With the acquisition, the group now has access not only to AI courses and learning tools but also the US market, he said. The group has six campuses: Dubai (opened in 2004), Singapore (2005), Sydney (2012), Mumbai (2015), London (2023), and now CMU in San Jose, California.
The group primarily has two flagship programmes: master of global business and executive MBA.
Its campuses, excluding CMU, have a total of 3,000 students, of which 70% are Indians.
“We are looking at increasing the international student ratio. In the next two years, we want to bring it up to at least 50%,” Jain said.
“AI is at the beginning of the cycle rather than an overblown cycle because of the power of these large language models or generative AI models,” said Jain.
CMU is located about a 15-minute drive from top AI companies like AMD, Nvidia, Google and Apple, he said.
“The whole ecosystem is designed for AI. And we are also launching very interesting and attractive programmes, one of them is an MBA in AI next month,” Jain said.
The SP Jain Group is also going to offer an MS in AI programme. “These programmes are accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC) and approved by the US Department of Education,” he said.
Students at its other five campuses will also have the option to graduate with a US degree.
Students will be eligible to apply for optional practical training and curricular practical training in the US.
With the help of CMU, the SP Jain Group is also introducing AI tutor technology to help students with learning, he said.
In terms of placement season this year, Jain said at least 50% of students at its institutes already have jobs in hand and the process is still ongoing.
