University sells teacher certificates, loses license | Bangkok Post: learning

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With 42.6 million baht in tuition to return to students, 8,565 students will have to find new schools.

Photo above of a group of students from E-Sarn University who failed to obtain professional teacher certificates from the Teacher Council of Thailand after graduation. They paid 33,600 baht each for their one-year courses. They accused the university of offering courses without accreditation.

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Local News
EDUCATION

Ohec panel nulls E-Sarn Uni's licence

20/09/2012
Lamphai Intathep

Khon Kaen-based E-Sarn University is finally being closed down after it was found to have sold teacher certificates to its students last year.

Education Minister Suchart Thada-Thamrongvech yesterday signed an order to revoke the university's licence.

The university came under the spotlight last year when the Teachers Council of Thailand revoked several hundred of its graduates' licences after it was discovered the university had sold professional teacher certificates to them.

The Office of Higher Education Commission (Ohec) then set up a panel to investigate the certificate sale and purchase scandal and also take control of the university's administration. Some graduates confessed to buying certificates. Yesterday, the panel decided to revoke the university's licence.

Kamchorn Tatiyakawee, Ohec's deputy secretary-general and chairman of the committee taking control of the university, said the licence revocation was mainly because the university failed to follow the law with its finances.

He said some assets of the university could not be verified and the university licensee had not yet returned students' tuition fees worth up to 42.6 million baht to the university.

The closure will be effective at the end of October so students can finish their semester. Once the university is closed down, 8,565 current students will not be able to graduate from it.

Of them, an estimated 2,000 are studying at bachelor's level and the rest are master's degree students. The students will be transferred to other universities.

(Source: Bangkok Post, Local News, EDUCATION, Ohec panel nulls E-Sarn Uni's licence, 20/09/2012, Lamphai Intathep, link) 


Educational Standards Vocabulary

diploma mill - a company that sells academic degrees and certificates for no or almost no academic study and courses, the purchaser can then claim they have a degree to get work and the company makes a profit (See Wikipedia)

diploma - an official piece of paper showing that a student completed a course of study at a school, a graduation certificate อนุปริญญา (See Wikipedia)
mill - a factory

standards - an acceptable level of quality or achievement มาตรฐาน
educational standards

educational accreditation - a process of checking to see if a school meets educational standards and if it does then issuing a licence (See Wikipedia)

licence - an official document that gives someone permission to do or use something ใบอนุญาต
revoke - take away, cancel, officially end; to officially say that something is no longer legal, e.g., a law, a document, a contract ยกเลิก เพิกถอน

revoke licence - take away licence, cancel licence
nulls license - Same as "revoke licence"

revocation - officially ending something, offiicially taking something away
licence revocation

Education Minister Suchart Thada-Thamrongvech yesterday signed an order to revoke the university's licence.

certificate - an official document or record stating that particular facts are true ประกาศนียบัตร เกียรติบัตร

teacher certificates
professional teacher certificates

graduation - when you complete your course of stufy at a school and receive your certificate or diploma การสำเร็จการศึกษา

Khon Kaen-based E-Sarn University is finally being closed down after it was found to have sold teacher certificates to its students last year.

panel - a group of people brought together to discuss, investigate, and give advice on a subject or problem
Ohec panel nulls E-Sarn Uni's licence

spotlight - the centre of public attention เป็นที่สนใจ
came under the spotlight

The university came under the spotlight last year when the Teachers Council of Thailand revoked several hundred of its graduates' licences after it was discovered the university had sold professional teacher certificates to them.

purchase - buy 
scandal - a situation in which important people behave in a dishonest, immoral or embarassing way that shocks people เรื่องอื้อฉาว (See Wikipedia)

certificate sale and purchase scandal
set up a panel to investigate the certificate sale and purchase scandal

administration
take control of the university's administration

confess - say that you did something (when you don't top say this), admit
graduates confessed to buying certificates

The Office of Higher Education Commission (Ohec) then set up a panel to investigate the certificate sale and purchase scandal and also take control of the university's administration. Some graduates confessed to buying certificates. Yesterday, the panel decided to revoke the university's licence.

deputy - a person who is given the power to do something instead of another person, or the person whose rank is immediately below that of the leader of an organisation รอง, ตัวแทน,ผู้รักษาการแทน

Kamchorn Tatiyakawee, Ohec's deputy secretary-general and chairman of the committee taking control of the university, said the licence revocation was mainly because the university failed to follow the law with its finances.

assets - things owned, especially property and money;  for example: stocks, bonds, real estate, loans to others, or money สินทรัพย์
assets of the university

verified - checked to make sure that something is real and true
some assets of the university could not be verified

tuition - teaching; the work of a teacher ค่าเล่าเรียน
fees - money that you pay to be allowed to do something ค่าธรรมเนียม
tuition fees

He said some assets of the university could not be verified and the university licensee had not yet returned students' tuition fees worth up to 42.6 million baht to the university.

effective - when somehing officially starts or begins to be used
the closure will be effective at the end of October

current - of the present time ปัจจุบัน
8,565 current students

transferred (verb) - 1. moved; 2. changed someone's job or responsibilities โยกย้ายตำแหน่ง
students  transferred to other universities

transfers (noun) - changing the location of a person's work (for example, transferred to work in a different province) โยกย้าย โอน
the cost of the transfers

responsibility - 1. being blamed for something that goes wrong, 2. having to take care of some task as part of your job
teachers' salaries would be the responsibility of the university

The closure will be effective at the end of October so students can finish their semester. Once the university is closed down, 8,565 current students will not be able to graduate from it. Of them, an estimated 2,000 are studying at bachelor's level and the rest are master's degree students. The students will be transferred to other universities. Furthermore, some teachers would also be moved to other universities with their students. He said the cost of the transfers and teachers' salaries would be the responsibility of the university

improve - to make better ทำให้ดีขึ้น
improve educational standards

provide - to give someone something that they want or need
provide educational standards

rector - the person in charge in some universities, schools, colleges and universities อธิการบดี อธิการบดีของมหาวิทยาลัยหรือวิทยาลัย
E-Sarn University rector Atsadang Sawangkarn

injunction - an order form a court that prevents someone from doing something คำสั่งคุ้มครองชั่วคราว, คำสั่งห้าม
seek an Administrative Court injunction halting the revocation of the licence

"I would like this case to be a lesson for other universities to provide and improve their educational standards, otherwise they might face this problem in future," he said. E-Sarn University rector Atsadang Sawangkarn yesterday said he would seek an Administrative Court injunction halting the revocation of the licence.

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