Dusit Thani College has plans to invest about 125 million baht in major renovations at its Bangkok campus and open an outdoor cooking studio, aiming to train workers to serve the rapidly growing tourism industry as well as strengthen the country's competitiveness.
The hospitality school affiliated with Dusit International, the Thai multinational that operates Dusit Thani Hotel, expects to pour about 100 million baht into major renovations at the 25-year-old main campus on Srinakarin Road in eastern Bangkok.
"This will be the second phase of renovations, mainly covering classrooms, public and recreation areas, and kitchens," said Sarote Phornprapha, president of the college.
The renovation work is expected to start soon and be completed by the first quarter of 2019.
Mr Sarote said the college has completed the first phase of renovations with a total investment of 40 million baht, mostly for kitchen equipment and systems.
By the middle of this year, a new cooking studio worth 25 million baht is scheduled to open its doors in Seacon Square shopping mall in Bangkok. It will be the first cooking studio outside of the college.
"The cooking studio will offer training facilities, cooking demonstrations, and sell fresh products. We hope this studio will raise our presence in the public," he said.
Mr Sarote said Dusit Thani College offers seven undergraduate programmes covering tourism, hotels, hospitality, innovation management, and spa and wellness in Thai and English programmes; one graduate degree in hotel and restaurant management; and short training courses.
The college plans to open its first international master's degree programme in the middle of this year.
The average tuition for each student is 400,000 baht for the bachelor's degree level, 1 million baht for the English programme and 250,000 baht for the master's degree.
Each year, the college produces about 600 students -- 85% local and 15% foreigners, mainly from Southeast Asia.
Sarote: More specialists needed
Mr Sarote said the college earned 409 million baht in revenue in 2017. Revenue is expected to increase to 412 million baht and 420 million for 2018 and 2019, respectively, thanks to recent investment in the cooking studio and the new programmes.
Despite the college's claims there is no direct competitor in terms of reputation, there are several hospitality schools in the market that produce a number of graduates such as Bangkok University, Rangsit University and Sripatum University.
Mr Sarote said most locals working in the tourism industry seem to lack international standards such as foreign language skills, hygiene and punctuality.
Many Thais feel that hotel or housekeeping jobs do not provide social clout. The hospitality industry still needs lots more trained staff as it is projected to continue growing in the future.
"Thai tourism is growing and more specialists are in need, such as specialists for disable tourists, gastronomy experts, and culture experts," he said.
In order to meet higher demand, the Dusit Thani College Pattaya Campus is also offering intensive programmes, similar to those offered in Bangkok, while the Dusit Excellence Centre in Phaya Thai is focusing on short courses.
In 2019, Dusit Thani College in the Philippines is scheduled to open, helping develop a workforce to serve demand there.