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Diving overview:
- Bay Path University made the announcement Tuesday. Cambridge University acquisition planIt brings together two private Massachusetts nonprofit organizations focused on job training.
- The universities expect the deal to close this June, pending approval from accreditors and regulators. Cambridge plans to keep program costs the same and continue awarding degrees until the two institutions are fully integrated, which could take up to two years, officials said.
- Following the acquisition, Bay Path expects to enroll more than 5,000 students. The two institutions are similar in size. In fall 2022, Bay Path will have about 2,500 students, while Cambridge will have about 2,100 students.
Dive Insights:
The two organizations began discussions about a potential partnership last summer. They decided to come together based on a shared mission, according to a joint statement.
Headquartered in western Massachusetts, the 127-year-old Bay Path offers women-only undergraduate programs and coeducational graduate programs. According to fall 2021 federal data, the majority of undergraduate students were non-traditional students, generally defined as those 25 years of age or older.
Likewise, 80% of Boston-based Cambridge undergraduates were nontraditional that year. And the majority, 87%, studied part-time in fall 2022. There are five locations: one in California, one in Puerto Rico, and three in Massachusetts.
Both universities have a high percentage of graduate students. They made up nearly 47% of Bay Path's student population in fall 2022 and nearly 61% of Cambridge's student population.
Cambridge's board believed that finding “a larger platform and like-minded partner” was the best way to advance its mission, Stephen Healey, the institution's interim president, said in a statement.
“Bay Path University is well-suited to integrate Cambridge College’s programs and serve a non-traditional student body,” Healey said.
The two institutions share an accrediting body, the New England Commission of Higher Education. Approval is required along with approval from state regulators.
Massachusetts Department of Higher Education Commissioner Noe Ortega expressed support for the acquisition Tuesday, saying the two institutions seek to combine in a way that puts students first.
“Leaders from both institutions have worked to ensure a smooth transition for current Cambridge College students, giving them confidence that degree completion will continue to be a priority,” Ortega said in a statement.
Cambridge has many of the characteristics of universities that close or merge with other institutions.
Enrollment fell 36.8 percent, from 3,378 students in fall 2012 to 2,135 a decade later. It also posted deficits from fiscal years 2018 to 2022, according to its most recent tax records.
Bay Path's fall 2022 enrollment of 2,465 students is slightly higher than a decade ago.
However, enrollment is down 28.4% from its recent high in fall 2018, when the school had 3,444 students. It recorded a revenue surplus during the period, tax documents show.