Thailand Hopes to be Next Educational Center
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International education in Thailand is expected to grow by 10% a year according to the Commerce Ministry. It is expected that the number of foreign students will increase to 100,000 from 30,000 within the next five years
Mr. Rachane Potjanasuntorn, Director General of the Department of Export Promotion (DEP) said, “The quality of international schools in Thailand is acknowledged worldwide with the lower cost being our greatest strength. Our rich culture, hospitality, good living environment and attractive tourist destinations are also reasons that draw more students to study here.”
“We can also get even more students if Thai universities reach out to other countries and offer promotions for foreign students,” added Mr. Potjanasuntorn.
Khun Usa Somboon, President of the International Schools Association of Thailand said, “Despite the recent economic crisis, the number of school students has remained steady over the past few years. There were about 32,000 students in Thailand’s international schools each year. Furthermore, more school students from South Korea and Japan are studying in Thailand.”
"International schools in Thailand offer the same standards as the ones in Europe and the US. They get assessed by three international assessment or
ganizations every five years and Thailand's Office for National Education Standards and Quality Assessment," added Khun Somboon.“Students from Thai as well as international schools in Thailand were accepted by many world class universities. Studying in Thailand costs about 600,000 baht per year whereas studying in many other countries costs over a million Baht per year,” she added.
The DEP has been promoting Thailand's international educational programs for more than 10 years. So far, about 420 international and English language academic institutions in Thailand could provide around 900 programs to 102,466 students.
The annual Thailand International Education Exhibition (TIEE) was just recently held under the concept ‘Asia's Hub of International Education.’ The event was one of the strategies of the DEP to promote international education in Thailand.
The event was even attended by Princess Yiwang Pindarica of Bhutan who is studying for her bachelor’s degree at Webster University in Hua Hin.
The highlight of the exhibition was the specialized courses available in Thai schools such as the Aviation Institute which is accredited worldwide plus King Mongkut's University of Technology North Bangkok, which make the world famous rescue- robots.
Apart from those, there were also over 200 leading Thai international institutions that were there to give visitors information about their curricula.
There were also workshops for short movies, Thai and English language, singing techniques as well as performances from the students.
Visitors also learned more about international education from interesting talks by well-known people who have been through the experience.
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