Higher education
18 Nov 2010
On this page
- Short description of the higher education system
- Types of degrees
- Quality assurance and accreditation
- Recent reforms
Short description of the higher education system
In Thailand, higher education is provided by universities, technical institutes, professional and technical colleges and teacher colleges. Some institutions fall under the authority of the Ministry of Education, such as state universities and private institutions for higher education, technical, professional and agricultural institutions and teacher training colleges. Specialized training institutions fall under various ministries or government organizations.
Higher education institutions in the public sector can be distinguished as follows:
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Existing universities that have recently become independent.
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The former Rajabhat Institutions (originally only for teacher training, but now offering other study programmes as well), which have now gained university status.
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The 35 Rajamangala Institutes of Technology that have now been clustered into nine regional universities.
The number of private universities is steadily increasing to meet growing demand for higher education. In 2008 there were 78 public universities and 68 private higher education institutions. These institutions are administered by the Ministry of Education’s Private Higher Education Institutions Division, which must first approve institutions before they can begin operating.
Types of degrees
Thai higher education institutions offer four-year (and in some cases five to six-year) programmes leading to a bachelor’s degree, one to two-year master’s degree and two to five-year doctoral degree programmes. Some universities and other institutions also offer programmes at sub-degree levels. These include certificate programmes, which are usually at upper secondary level, and diploma or associate degree programmes, which normally provide practical training for employment purposes.
There are also professionally-oriented programmes of one or two years of coursework following a first degree or another professional qualification. These programmes lead to ‘postgraduate diplomas of specialization’ or ‘advanced professional qualification certificates or diplomas’.
Quality assurance and accreditation
There is no official ranking system for higher education institutions in Thailand, although state universities have always been held in high esteem. Guidelines for education used to be laid down by the former Ministry of University Affairs, which was also the most important accreditation body. Following the adoption of the National Education Act in 1999, the Ministry of Education took steps towards setting up a new system of quality assurance and accreditation covering both internal and external quality assurance.
Internal quality assurance is the responsibility of the education institution itself, whilst the Office of the National Education Standards and Quality Assessment (ONESQA) is responsible for external quality assurance. This public organization, set up in 2000, is independent of the Ministry of Education. The process of setting up an accreditation system is now well underway, with the first ONESQA assessment carried out in 2002, and a total of 81 higher education institutions assessed in 2004. ONESQA has now set up a subcommittee tasked with streamlining guidelines and criteria for accreditation.
Recent reforms
The adoption of a new constitution in 1997, followed in 1999 by the National Education Act and the National Education Plan for 2002-2016, has led to important changes in form of the introduction of a uniform policy and flexible implementation of that policy, of decentralization, quality assurance, improved teacher training at all levels and the mobilization of resources. These reforms are being supported by administrative changes such as the merger of the ministries of Education and of University Affairs with the National Education Committee Bureau to form a single, new Ministry of Education.
The task of the former Ministry of University Affairs has now been taken over by the Office of the Higher Education Commission (OHEC). In 2009, the Higher Education Commission designated nine higher education institutions as national research universities, as part of efforts to improve the quality of Thai universities, particularly in the area of research.
