Overview
- King’s College London and Cranfield University announced Thursday that they have signed a merger agreement targeting completion by the end of summer 2027, pending final approvals.
- The combined institution would keep the King’s College London name and is projected to enroll about 47,000 students, which would make it the second-largest campus-based university in the UK.
- Cranfield would integrate into King’s while bringing its postgraduate strengths in engineering, technology and management to expand applied research and industry partnerships.
- Professor Shitij Kapur is expected to remain as vice-chancellor to lead the merged university, according to the plan outlined by the institutions.
- The deal has early support from science minister Lord Patrick Vallance and follows an Office for Students report that 35.8% of English universities ran deficits in 2024–25.