King’s College London and Cranfield University have announced plans to merge by August 2027. The two universities have signed an agreement that they have hailed as the "first step" towards creating an "extraordinarily powerful" and "global" institution. The London and Bedford universities aim to become a unified entity in the next 14 months. Cranfield, a postgraduate public research university specialising in science, engineering, design, technology and management, will integrate into King’s College London. Leaders from both institutions said the move would create a "global university" and "bring some of the best of [the] UK to compete with the best in the world". Professor Shitij Kapur, vice chancellor and president of KCL, said: “The merger would bring new educational possibilities for students, new discoveries from academics and a clear focus on working in partnership with industry and government to support national resilience.…