Do university rankings truly measure up?

EDUCATION IN THAILAND

Do university rankings truly measure up?

Published: 29/07/2011 at 02:32 AM
Newspaper section: News

It is May 27, 2011 and two media reports about Thai higher education tell very opposite stories. On one hand, a feel-good news item published in The Nation newspaper trumpets that 5 Thai universities were ranked among the top 100 in the QS Asian University Rankings 2011. Turn the pages of the Bangkok Post, however, and the editorial "Get real about bad education" laments the sorry state of quality at the country's colleges and universities.

Wishing for a brighter future: Every November, students celebrate the Loy Krathong cultural festival at the pond in Chulalongkorn University. Thailand’s ‘‘modern knowledge management enterprises’’—universities—are in need of extroverted and visionary leadership.

So who is to be believed?

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Writer: Said Irandoust & Sandro Calvani

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jacksprat
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Discussion 5 : 29/07/2011 at 06:58 PM5
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@Ian - not at all, you use a very wide brush. But I would say that very Thai few universities are up to international standards. A degree from the "biggies" will be respected abroad - Chula, Thammasat, Mahidol, Kasetsart, Chiang Mai ... a few others. Of the private universities, Assumption maybe. That is about it. I have taught full time at 3 of the "name" unies, part time at several of the private universities. The instruction at the private unies generally is fine, no problem there; but the standards for passing are ridiculously low. They are businesses and money comes first. Everything is a "university" in Thailand nowadays. Want to start your own, go ahead. All it takes is money. Even Thaksin started a university. If it is so good, why didn't he send his own children to it?
jacksprat
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Discussion 4 : 29/07/2011 at 06:26 PM4
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The university ratings leave me completely befuddled. Comparisons should be made between faculties, not universities. How does one compare the Faculty of Medicine at Mahidol with the Faculty of Commerce and Accountancy at Thammasat? The Faculty of Liberal Arts at Chulalongkorn with the Faculty of Law at Thammasat? Agriculture at Kasesart with Archaeology at Silpakorn? But that is what these ratings are doing - comparing apples with oranges and coming up with a durian.
Ian Wensor
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Discussion 3 : 29/07/2011 at 02:41 PM3
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Foreigh countries deem so called Thai university degree - not worth the paper they're written on.
Victor
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Discussion 2 : 29/07/2011 at 09:41 AM2
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As for universities in Thailand.....
There still are quite a few professors who have been using the same textbook to teach classes that they have started with since day one when they were young lecturers decades ago. And some, at least, got to be full professors without having to do a single meaning research work. This practice must stop, especially for science and technical fields.
Victor
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Discussion 1 : 29/07/2011 at 08:32 AM1
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There should be 2 seperated rankings, one for teaching (undergrad) and another for research (graduate degrees), because, even for the top 10 in the world, I don't think they will ask all those senior professors to teach freshman courses but usually rely on teaching assistants to do the hard works.
And I've found that, after decades working in the real world, the worst people to work with (or work for) were those who went to the expensive top ten. My conclusion is that, if your father isn't rich for famous, stay away from them.

Do university rankings truly measure up? | Bangkok Post: opinion