April 2015

Thailand – Education & ResearchPartnership Opportunities
Thai Government priorities


Improve research management systems in Thailand’s institutions.
Strong focus on increasing the numbers of researchers in science and technology.
Greater opportunities to build research capacity through 11 centres of excellence in universities.
Strengthen implementation of the Thai National Qualifications Framework and referencing tothe ASEAN Qualification Reference Framework.
Improving English language skills for teachers.
Increase numbers of students studying STEM subjects.
Increase student and researcher mobility and opportunities for internships.
Focus on skilling labour force.
Position Thailand as an international education hub.

Emerging trendsDeveloping Thailand’s education system to ensure a sustainable supply of skilled mechanics,
technicians and engineers.
Improving the quality of Thai institutions and internationalisation of Thailand’s researchintensive universities.
Increasing number of academic partnerships i.e. joint degrees, double degrees and cotutelle PhD
arrangements.
Increasing internationalisation of Thailand’s higher education sector, with public and private
higher education institutions already offering a total of 1,044 international programs in English.
Thailand already hosts over 20,000 international students.
There were 16,155 Thai student visa holders in Australia in 2014, responsible for 25,642
enrolments at Australian education providers across all education sectors (18.4% increase on2013). This made Thailand the fifth largest source market for international enrolments across allsectors.
In 2014, Thai ELICOS enrolments increased by 30% and vocational education and training (VET)
enrolments increased by 17% on 2013 levels. Thailand is ranked third as a source country for

Opportunity through learningThailand – Opportunities / Goals / Activities
ELICOS student enrolments, after China and Brazil. Meanwhile, Thai enrolments in the higher
education sector declined 7.5% in 2014 compared to 2013.

Opportunities for Australia

Increase number of Thai students undertaking pathway courses in Australia – Thailand isAustralia’s third largest ELICOS market after China and Brazil and fourth largest for VET.
Boost to institutional rankings through increased collaboration in joint publications andresearcher mobility.
Increase research collaboration in areas including energy, environment, agricultural
biotechnology, medicine, materials science, applied mathematics and nanotechnology.
The quality of many Thai universities and the large number of programs delivered in English
make Thailand an ideal host for greater numbers of Australian students under the New Colombo
Plan and Endeavour mobility programs.
Showcase Australian expertise in teaching and learning, English language proficiency andleadership in schools.
Access Thai government scholarships to encourage greater student and academic mobility.

Our key goals

Develop greater student and academic mobility.
Increase research and institutional linkages.
Foster a positive education relationship, strengthening Australia’s reputation for quality
education and training across all sectors.
Support Thailand’s economic growth, Australian businesses in Thailand, student and labour
mobility across the ASEAN region and Australia.

Key activities and events 2015
Date
9 May
18-19 May
Late May
4 JulyOctober
2-8 November
14-15 November

Early December

Activity
EdNET Australian Education Interview Program on Science, Technology andSustainability, Bangkok
TVET Quality Assurance Framework workshop to assist Thailand develop an action
plan to improve QA in TVET
Australia Awards alumni focus group and networking function, Bangkok
CP International Australian Education Fair, Bangkok
Quality assurance frameworks in Australian higher education seminar, Bangkok
Australian and Visa Student Services (AVSS) Education Fair, Thailand(2 Nov – Bangkok, 4 Nov – Khon Kaen, 6 Nov – Chiang Mai, 8 Nov – Phuket)
The OCSC International Education Expo 2015, Bangkok, hosted by the Office of theCivil Service Commission (OCSC – Thai government agency that manages government
scholarships schemes)
Australia-Thailand Joint Working Group on Education and Training, Canberra2