The higher education system in Thailand is quite complex and has lacked policy cohesion. It is
under responsibility of 10 ministries and 1 independent agency. Key Ministries are the Ministry
of Education (MOE) and the Ministry of University Affairs (MUA). Others are Public Health,
Agriculture and Cooperatives, Defenses, Transport and Communications, Justice, Science,
Technology and the Environment, Office of the Prime Minister and the Thai Red Cross.
In 2000 there are a total of 645 institutions, not counting the different campuses. 74 are under
MUA, 489 under MOE and there are 82 specialized institutions. Two levels of tertiary
education are offered, namely, Diploma Level and Degree Level. Programs can be classified
into academic, professional and technology programs.
Regarding access to higher education, nearly one quarter of the higher education age-group
have enrolled in higher education institutes, excluding open universities, Table 1. Thailand
should be proud of this quality access to higher education. However, we recognize that at
regional level access to formal education at all levels, in particular higher education, varies
markedly between regions, especially with that of Bangkok area. Factors detrimental to access to
quality education are socio-economic background and concentration of schools and higher
education institutes in Bangkok and big cities. Moreover, quality education, not quantity
education, is a determining factor of the present millennium in the age of the new economy