MIT World Peace University (MIT-WPU) is a state private university located in Kothrud, Pune, in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It was established in 2017 under an Act of the Maharashtra State Legislature and forms part of the MAEER's Maharashtra Institute of Technology (MIT) group of educational institutions, one of the largest privately run education networks in Pune. The university offers undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral programmes across engineering, management, sciences, liberal arts, design, law, pharmacy, media and other disciplines, and emphasises the theme of peace studies as a cross-cutting element of its curriculum.
| Name | MIT World Peace University |
|---|---|
| Type | State private university |
| Established | 2017 |
| Parent trust | MAEER (Maharashtra Academy of Engineering and Educational Research) |
| Location | Kothrud, Pune, Maharashtra, India |
| Founder (MIT group) | Vishwanath Karad |
| Affiliation | Recognised by the University Grants Commission (UGC) |
The institution traces its origins to the Maharashtra Institute of Technology (MIT), founded in Pune in 1983 by Vishwanath Dattatraya Karad through MAEER. Over the following decades, the trust expanded into a cluster of engineering, management and professional colleges in and around Pune. MIT-WPU was created by elevating and consolidating several of these MIT-group programmes into a unified private university with a focus on value-based education and the philosophy of peace, drawing from the writings of Indian thinkers such as Swami Vivekananda and from the trust's long-running World Peace Centre activities.
MIT-WPU is organised into several faculties and schools covering engineering and technology, management, computer science and applications, sciences, liberal arts, economics, law, design, pharmacy, media and communication, and peace studies. Programmes are offered at the bachelor's, master's and doctoral levels, including professional courses such as B.Tech, BBA, BCA, B.Pharm, B.Des, BA LLB and corresponding postgraduate degrees. The university operates on a credit-based semester system and integrates courses on ethics, leadership and peace studies into its general curriculum.
The main campus is situated in Kothrud, a residential and educational suburb in western Pune, adjacent to other institutions of the MIT group. Facilities on campus include academic buildings, laboratories, libraries, hostels, sports grounds and student amenities. The campus also hosts activities associated with the MIT World Peace Centre, including conferences and lectures on peace, philosophy and interfaith dialogue.
MIT-WPU is among the larger private universities in Pune and reflects the city's broader role as one of India's prominent higher-education hubs. Its distinctive positioning lies in combining mainstream professional education with an institutional emphasis on peace studies, ethics and Indian philosophical traditions. The MIT group's wider activities, including international peace conferences hosted in Pune, have given the university a public profile beyond its academic programmes.