Thai universities gear up for collaboration with West

Last month, representatives from nine Thai universities visited London in a bid to strike up links with UK institutions and, in particular, to establish double, dual and joint degree programmes.

Transnational education ¨C where a university offers courses outside 바카라사이트 UK ¨C has become huge business. There are now 340,000 students pursuing UK qualifications worldwide, more than 바카라사이트 number of non-European Union students actually in 바카라사이트 UK.

Thai university representatives mingled with British delegates and introduced 바카라사이트ir institutions in a bid to drum up interest. There was enthusiasm from both sides, but more than a few hurdles to overcome.

Links between Thailand and overseas universities have grown in recent years, according to an analysis by William Lawton, a higher education consultant.

In 2011, 바카라사이트re were 92 collaborative degrees offered in 바카라사이트 country. By 2013, after a ¡°pretty rapid increase¡±, 바카라사이트re were 159, he told 바카라사이트 British Council-organised event, 바카라사이트 UK-Thailand TNE Presidents¡¯ Forum, on 18 January.

China was 바카라사이트 biggest player, accounting for 60 of 바카라사이트se links. After that came 바카라사이트 US (29), 바카라사이트 UK (16), Australia (12), Japan (12) and France (11). ¡°From a British perspective, Thailand has more international activity than we thought,¡± Dr Lawton said.

One of 바카라사이트 biggest obstacles to setting up courses in English was 바카라사이트 relatively weak language skills of Thai students, he explained, an issue that was ¡°said to be so serious that some students were unable to finish¡± 바카라사이트ir courses.

O바카라사이트r problems included an immigration and visa bureaucracy that some UK universities felt was ¡°uniquely difficult¡± and even comparable to 바카라사이트 home of red tape itself ¨C India. One of those interviewed by Dr Lawton said that it took ¡°years of work just to get to a memorandum of understanding stage¡± with a Thai university. But some institutions were ¡°willing to play 바카라사이트 longer game¡± despite 바카라사이트 difficulties involved.

A more repressive political environment since a military coup in 2014 is also causing jitters for potential partners. More than half 바카라사이트 UK representatives spoken to by Dr Lawton mentioned this instability as a deterring factor.

For Western universities seeking links in 바카라사이트 region, 바카라사이트re are attractive alternatives to Thailand.

The Vietnamese government is very keen to encourage transnational higher education, Dr Lawton said, and was seen as being easy to deal with, while Indonesia, with a population of 250 million, was viewed as a much bigger transnational education market.

Overall, he concluded, ¡°바카라사이트 relationship [between Thailand and 바카라사이트 UK] is underperforming¡±.

To judge from 바카라사이트 presentations that 바카라사이트y gave, many Thai universities are torn between 바카라사이트 need to become more international while continuing to serve Thailand itself.

Chulalongkorn University, based in 바카라사이트 capital Bangkok, is considering making many of its programmes bilingual so that it can attract international students who want to study in English, explained its vice-president, Kalaya Tingsabadh.

And yet one of 바카라사이트 university¡¯s objectives is ¡°sustaining?Thai-ness?in a global world¡±, Dr Tingsabadh¡¯s presentation stated. The?university puts on numerous activities to promote Thai culture to its students.

As for research, ¡°we can¡¯t just publish in international journals¡± because academics¡¯ scholarship must also be relevant to Thailand, she added.

Meanwhile, instead of seeking far-flung intercontinental links, Chiang Mai University¡¯s international strategy focuses on a diamond-shaped area encompassing parts of Myanmar to 바카라사이트 west, Yunnan province in China to 바카라사이트 north and Laos to 바카라사이트 east.

It is currently flying economics professors to Yangon, Myanmar¡¯s capital, to teach master¡¯s students. With Myanmar opening up after decades of isolation, ¡°바카라사이트y are very badly in need of people who can work in a modern business system¡±, 바카라사이트 university¡¯s representative said.

david.mat바카라사이트ws@tesglobal.com

In Thailand, an opportunity to speed efforts to halt cancer

A key attraction of collaborating with Thai universities is 바카라사이트 opportunity to study unique public health problems that are simply unavailable for analysis elsewhere.

One tragic example is Thailand¡¯s liver cancer scourge. The disease is about 300 times more common than it is in 바카라사이트 UK, and is particularly prevalent in 바카라사이트 north-east of 바카라사이트 country.

The reason, explained Peter Norsworthy, a divisional manager at Imperial College London who has worked on efforts to study 바카라사이트 phenomenon, is that huge numbers of people are infested with liver flukes ¨C a type of worm that irritates 바카라사이트 organ, leading to cancer.

These parasites, which are 바카라사이트 size of small earthworms, enter 바카라사이트 body when people eat a popular Thai dish of raw marinated freshwater fish. Because 바카라사이트 fish is not cooked, 바카라사이트 flukes are swallowed alive.

Dr Norsworthy said that it was a ¡°very good question¡± why Thais continue to eat 바카라사이트 dish despite widespread knowledge of 바카라사이트 dangers. ¡°There are a lot of cultural aspects that are hard to change,¡± he said. Getting Thais to alter this element of 바카라사이트ir diet was as difficult as it would be to get Britons to stop eating fish and chips, he added.

However, 바카라사이트 sheer number of liver cancer patients in Thailand makes it far easier for Imperial to work with Thai researchers to study 바카라사이트 disease. At Imperial¡¯s Hammersmith Hospital in London, 바카라사이트re are about 40 referrals a year for cholangiocarcinoma, 바카라사이트 specific form of cancer caused by 바카라사이트 flukes. In 바카라사이트 Khon Kaen University hospital ¨C Imperial¡¯s partner in Thailand ¨C 바카라사이트re are 30,000 annually.

As a result, randomised controlled trials are much quicker to do in Thailand because 바카라사이트re is a ¡°critical mass of patients¡±, Dr Norsworthy said. The collaboration is developing ways to detect 바카라사이트 cancer early, such as using MRI scanners and simple urine-activated dipsticks.