Top French business school launches Mumbai hub in India push

ESSEC’s Mumbai hub — its third after London and New York — will aim to strengthen ties with Indian universities, corporate partners and alumni, serving as a “catalyst for its ambitious academic roadmap” in the region. Sophie Collet Khanna, a Mumbai-based French higher education specialist, will serve as its director.

According to Vincenzo Vinzi, dean and president of ESSEC, which has campuses in Cergy (France), an Asia-Pacific campus in Singapore, and a campus in Rabat, Morocco, the school has over 450 Indian students and saw India as the “natural choice” for its next international development due to its “unparalleled economic momentum and world-class talent pool”.

“As a business school, we educate students to build careers in companies or launch their own entrepreneurial ventures,” Vinzi told The PIE News.

“Mumbai, as the economic capital of India, offers a vibrant environment of large corporations, financial institutions, startups and industrial players. For us, it clearly stood out as the best city to establish our presence in India.”

These facilities will host our future local team, will be able to welcome ESSEC students during study trips, and provide in-country support for masterclasses and executive education modules for our corporate partners

_{Vincenzo Vinzi, ESSEC}

ESSEC’s Mumbai hub announcement came amid French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to India last month, which began in Mumbai, where he met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to exchange MOUs across defence, space, technology and cultural cooperation, and launched the India–France Year of Innovation 2026 at the India–France Innovation Forum.

The official visit also saw Macron participate in the AI Impact Summit hosted by India – the first time the event has been held in a Global South country since its launch in 2023.

In education, France and India reaffirmed their commitment to the Classes Internationales – a preparatory program for international high school graduates pursuing undergraduate studies in France, offering language training among other support – while reiterating the country’s target of hosting 30,000 Indian students by 2030, up from 10,000 currently.

Moreover over 200 universities and research bodies from both countries explored joint degrees and collaborations across digital sciences, advanced materials, aeronautics and AI in healthcare, alongside a focus on skills mobility under the India–France Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement (MMPA), and the Young Professionals Scheme (YPS).

Against this backdrop, ESSEC’s Mumbai hub — in partnership with CentraleSupélec for its “STEM-B approach” — was highlighted in the Macron–Modi joint statement.

Elements of this model, drawing on the two French institutions’ joint degree offerings across entrepreneurship, data science, business analytics, AI and management, will be implemented through the Mumbai hub, according to ESSEC.

“These programs leverage the complementary expertise of our two institutions. More importantly, they boost students’ employability by preparing them for the increasingly interdisciplinary skills required by today’s job market,” stated Vinzi.

“We are now exploring how we could extend elements of these programs to India through our ESSEC Mumbai Hub. This is more than a formal agreement; it is an integrated partnership translating into a future-fit education for our students.”

The institute is also strengthening its partnerships with the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIM Bangalore), with whom it will introduce a double degree awarding an ESSEC Master in Management (MiM) and an IIM Bangalore MBA, and with the Indian School of Business (ISB), enhancing student mobility initiatives.

Such developments are likely to see more French students travel to India as part of their programs, an approach previously highlighted as a way to offer a modern perspective on the country.

“In the coming months, we will begin the search for space in Mumbai. These facilities will host our future local team, will be able to welcome ESSEC students during study trips, and provide in-country support for masterclasses and executive education modules for our corporate partners,” stated Vinzi.

“Over time, we hope this hub will become a platform for deeper academic and business collaborations between ESSEC and the Indian ecosystem.”

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