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Country profile and market information Thailand Introduction General Country Information
Higher Education
Sources: National Statistical Office of Thailand, Commission on Higher Education - Ministry of Education, Economist Intelligence Unit, ‘Vision 2020: Global Student Mobility', British Council Economy of Thailand Thailand has a population of 63.1 million people, about 12 million of whom live in the Bangkok metropolitan area. Thailand's economy has recovered from the Asian crisis and continues to grow. The current government is stable and places emphasis on economic stability. The gross national product is currently US$ 2.587 per capita. Traditionally Thailand's economy was based on agricultural exports. In the 25 years up to 1998, it was transformed into one of the most diverse economies in Southeast Asia. From 1990 onwards the fastest growth was in high-technology goods such as computer accessories and motor vehicle parts. The following tables list the main commodities and major trade-partners.
Source: Economist Intelligence Unit, Thai Ministry of Commerce, Delegation of the European Commission in Thailand Education system of Thailand Thailand's education system is divided into pre-school, primary, lower secondary, upper secondary (general and vocational), and higher education. As the Thai economy became more international in the 1990s, English became an indispensable requirement in business. As a result, there are increasing numbers of international universities (teaching in English) as well as public and private universities teaching specific courses in English. In Thailand 1,331,935 students are enrolled in higher education. Admission to public universities is based on an entrance exam and competition is intense: fewer than one-quarter of applicants secure a place at a public university. Because of the large demand for higher education, there has been a rapid increase in the number of private institutions. The main levels in higher education are programmes leading to sub-degrees, professional diplomas, Bachelors, Masters and Doctorate degrees. Social sciences are studied by 51% of the undergraduate students. Higher education institutions in Thailand consist of public universities, private universities, Rajabhat institutes, the Rajamangala Institute of Technology and it's 40 campuses. Among the public universities, 6 are autonomous universities. The public universities are perceived as the most prestigious institutions, and degrees awarded by well established public universities can be considered comparable to the degrees awarded in English-speaking countries. Business studies is the most popular field of study, while the popularity of engineering is declining(a). Education market of Thailand
Under the 1999 Education Reform Act, Thailand is committed to wholesale reform of its education system. This has created opportunities for collaborative projects and has led to the quadrupling of PhD scholarships offered to University academics and graduates.
The U.S., Australia, New Zealand and other European countries are the main destinations where Thai students can be found. The total number of Thai students in overseas higher education is estimated at almost 18.000 and this number is expected to increase more than four times by 2025 (b). The ability of the European Union to act as an integrated area of higher education will be closely linked to the performance and development of its education and research system as such. Therefore, the international attractiveness of Europe will play an important role. The U.S. is still the first country that most Thai students tend to consider. However, there has been a notable decline in the proportion of students considering studying in the U.S.: in 1997 almost all Thai students (95%) would have considered the U.S., by 2000 this proportion had dropped to 67%. Nonetheless, the U.S. is still the favoured choice of Thai students (51%). Thai students are most likely to go overseas to study business studies, management, or marketing (c). In November 2004 the first EHEF funded by the European Commission fair was organised in Bangkok. The fair attracted almost 4,000 visitors of which 54% were interested in Masters programmes. The following tables illustrate the subject areas and level of study favoured by visitors to the EHEF in Bangkok in 2004.
Source: www.ehef-bkk.org
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