Ambow Announces Vocational Education Training Partnership with McGraw-Hill

On November 11, McGraw-Hill Cos. and Ambow Education Group announced a partnership to develop English language training content specifically geared toward IT engineers. The content will be delivered through Ambow’s extensive network of vocational training programs around China. 

As part of the agreement, McGraw-Hill and Ambow will work with the Chinese city of Kunshan in Jiangsu province to build upon the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) initiatives already in progress. Kunshan is one of 20 cities around China that the Chinese government has designated as a BPO center, and Ambow has already built a large-scale vocational training center there.  

McGraw-Hill did not release a value for the deal, though the Wall Street Journal reports McGraw-Hill Chairman and Chief Executive Terry McGraw describing the deal as the “opportunity of the century” in digital education.  

Ambow also announced a partnership with McGraw-Hill subsidiary J.D. Powers and Associates, a leading market information services provider and global information services company, on vocational education and training in the city of Dalian in Liaoning province. The companies will work closely together to develop a Service Outsourcing Readiness Index to track the competitiveness and capabilities of Dalian as a BPO center. 

The news of the historic partnership between Ambow and McGraw-Hill has been picked up by a variety of US and Chinese news sources. Please see the links below for articles about the partnerships. 

Wall Street Journal: "McGraw-Hill, Chinese Firm Form Venture in Education"  (subscription required) 

PR Newswire: "McGraw-Hill Deepens Commitment to China's Billion Professional Development Education Market through New Relationship with Ambow Education" 

PR Newswire: "The McGraw-Hill Companies Announces New Initiatives to Help the Chinese City of Kunshan to Drive Economic Growth and Further Enhance its BPO Capabilities" 

PR Newswire: "J.D. Power and Associates Launches New Index in China to Help Chinese Cities Attract Foreign Investment and Become Internationally Competitive BPO Centers" 

JLM Pacific Epoch: "Ambow, McGraw-Hill Sub Offer Vocational Training” 

China Industry Times 中华工商时报 (Chinese): “大连外包中心城市竞争力将获提升” 

Xinhua News 新华网 (Chinese): “中国经济转型或将催生40亿美元职业教育市场” 

Suzhou Daily News 苏州日报 (Chinese): “麦格劳—希尔集团牵手昆山”