American National College to launch international school

Lumbini EDIRISINGHE

The American National College (ANC) which conducts foreign degree programs in Sri Lanka will invest on another branch in Colombo shortly.

Meanwhile, the company has invested Rs. 500 million on a new campus close to the existing premises with a seating capacity of 500 students. With the new facility the ANC could accommodate nearly 2,000 students.

CEO/Executive Director of ANC Education Holdings, Dr Punarjeeva Karunathilake told Daily News Business that they have already bought a top international school in Colombo and hope to launch it next month.

“Last year, we doubled our revenue and increased the student intake in the Sri Lankan market. ANC will expand their infrastructure facilities in the next few years. We are looking for another five acres to expand,” he said

“There’s a massive market in Sri Lanka, as only 10 per cent of students enter local universities. Although they entered the university they are worried of the duration of the degree programs. ANC is targeting the remaining 90 per cent of the students who hope to follow higher studies and there are about 5,000 students who go abroad annually for higher studies and their parents invest a lot of money on education,” he added.

In Sri Lanka, the average foreign graduate’s salary is over Rs 50,000 per month. They are qualified and meet the high requirements of local and foreign top companies. The Companies need qualified graduates,” he said.

“Our academic performance has been very successful and basically we are strong financially. That’s why we are investing heavily on the education industry in Sri Lanka. Our profits have increased tremendously with the high demand in the local market,” he said.