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Session 1663

A SURVEY OF MANUFACTURING RELATED EDUCATION IN THAILAND

Rawin Raviwongse, Yildirim Omurtag Department of Engineering Management University of Missouri-Rolla

Abstract

The development of Thailand’s economy in the past decades was mainly induced by the rapid growth of the nation’s manufacturing sector. In order to sustain the advantage of such expansion, a sufficient number of skilled personnel in manufacturing-related fields is needed. The higher education system in Thailand is currently playing a key role in preparing such human resources for manufacturing. This paper attempts to present an overview of the status and the recent developments in university-level manufacturing-related education in Thailand. Features of the higher education system and the examples of the manufacturing-related courses from various educational institutes are presented. Concluding remarks and recommendations for preparations to make advances in the 21 st century are also provided.

I. Introduction

Over the past decades Thailand has consistently been among the five fastest growing countries in the world.[1] The main factor behind this growth is the balanced development of the agricultural, service, and manufacturing sectors. Within these fields, the manufacturing sector plays an important role in the economy. During the 1990's a double digit growth (11.8-13.9%) has been recorded.[2] The manufacturing sector's share of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has increased steadily from 13% in 1960 to 26% in 1990. During the same period the agricultural share of the GDP has dropped from 40% to just over 12%.[3]

In order to support the rapidly expanding manufacturing sector, there is considerable need for skilled personnel in the manufacturing field. During the mid 1980's to the early 1990's, Thailand has experienced a scarcity of technical personnel at all employment levels. The situation compelled the government to relax the employment regulations governing non-Thai engineers, scientists, and technicians and to establish a long term plan of developing native human resources in the fields of science and technology through the expansion of the university system.[2] Engineering Departments, for example, were established in existing medical and social science universities such as Mahidol University and Thammasat University. Moreover, a number of privately owned universities were established, and most of them offer the engineering degrees in various disciplines. As a result, the overall enrollment capacity in engineering programs has been increased almost 45% since 1987.[4]

1996 ASEE Annual Conference Proceedings

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Omurtag, Y., & Raviwongse, R. (1996, June), A Survey Of Manufacturing Related Education In Thailand Paper presented at 1996 Annual Conference, Washington, District of Columbia. 10.18260/1-2--6307