The history of higher education in Thailand can be traced back to the
modernization period almost one hundred years ago when the nation needed
to adapt herself dramatically to cope with the changes brought along by
western superpowers and to maintain its sovereignty. The primary
purposes of higher education then were to cultivate intellectuality in our
young and capable people with modern knowledge so that they would serve
in government services for the modernization of the nation. Systematically,
Thailand may have adopted higher education philosophy and system from
western nations, but in reality King Vajiravut who established
Chulalongkorn University, the first university of Thailand, had clearly
shown his intention to cultivate the consciousness of being Thai along with
the modern knowledge in his young men. Some of the obvious evidences are
the university’s Thai style architecture and academic gown designed
according to his own initiative. Courses of Thai arts, literature, language,
history, and Buddhism were also offered in the university together with
other subject matters adopted from western countries.