The government’s Eastern Economic Corridor Policy designates eastern Thailand as an area with high economic potential. As it is steadily developed, the land in eastern Thailand will be used appropriately to encourage commerce and industry. This is in accordance with the hope and expectation that modern and high technology will lead to environmentally-friendly innovations.
Assoc. Prof. Gasinee Witoonchart, Rector of Thammasat University
Thammasat University is one of nine universities with a campus in Chon Buri. Teaching and learning at Thammasat University Pattaya Campus is now being planned in accordance with the university’s policy in support of EEC development and the needs of concerned industrial groups. The university plans to develop the policy in three steps in accordance with human resources development and teaching & learning preparation for future motor vehicle manufacturing.
Assoc. Prof. Gasinee Witoonchart, Rector of Thammasat University, revealed that the first step is the development of the specific short-term learning curriculum. A training course will be set up and counselling provided for efficient and appropriate systematic personnel training. The training will be applied to target groups in the industrial sectors, the hospitality industry, and associated state agencies. This includes conducting training courses for industrial sector and community personnel and encouraging students to cultivate their language skills so they can work effectively in the factories.
The second step of the plan involves building academic cooperation with international educational institutes and business organisations. Thammasat University will cooperate with international universities worldwide with sponsorship from the industrial sector. Normally, students in the Faculty of Engineering study four years before graduating. However, under the university’s new improved plan, students will study two years at the Pattaya Campus and at a partner university for one year. The students will then do an internship with a foreign company and with an EEC company for one term each. The internship will be taken as university credits. The cooperative education and university credits will lead to higher pay. The plan emphasises increasing productivity in industries. The last phase of the second step is the development plan.
The third step is to establish a specialised operations centre and in-depth Engineering Research Centre for Thammasat University Pattaya Campus. This step concerns the long-term development period. The research institute and specialised operations centre will need to operate in line with industrial, environmental and community health because all sectors have to operate alongside each other. By putting too much emphasis on the industrial segment, and ignoring health, nature and conservation concerns, pollution problems will arise creating major issues for society and the country.
The teaching-learning lesson at Faculty of Engineering, Department of Automotive Engineering
Therefore, in fitting the development programme to EEC Policy, the university has come up with a well-rounded plan. In order to achieve the goal, the plan will cover key areas of social science & humanities, science & technology, and health science.
Assoc. Prof. Pornchai Tarkulwaranont, Vice Rector for Administration, Thammasat University explained that: “Thammasat University’s Liberal Arts Faculty is expert in North East Asia languages, including: Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. The university will develop teaching of these languages to the next level. The languages will be taught in support of the development of human resources in preparation for the future growth of the EEC. Thus, the programme recognises that languages are vital tools for communication within industry as well as for management and administration.”
“Nowadays, educational institutes have a major concern in how to incorporate knowledge and develop human resources in accordance with the Eastern Economic Corridor Policy. In so doing, we will promote The Eastern Seaboard Development Programme’s success. It will be a good example of developing academic infrastructure and land together with knowledge to promote industrial growth. Thammasat University is all set to enhance the delivery of education to a higher level, including conducting research and innovating. Thus, Thammasat students will learn by practicing how to efficiently and effectively solve problems.”