PSU Graduate School held its 36th anniversary on June 11, 2015 at the 60th Anniversary of His Majesty the King's Accession to the Throne International Convention Center. Guest of honor Assoc. Prof. Dr. Perapong Tekasakul, Vice President for Research System and Graduate Studies presided over the opening ceremony. In his opening speech, Dr. Perapong emphasized the importance of the Graduate School, and then presented two awards: Advisor of the Year 2015 and the Excellent Alumni Award.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Teerapon Srichana, PSU Dean of the Graduate School, informed the audience of the significant achievement that up to this date, PSU produced 16,000 graduates who passed the university's stringent graduation requirements, including thesis examination. PSU's 170 postgraduate programs consist of 112 Master's degree programs and 51 doctoral degree programs, in addition to six Higher Diploma programs and one Diploma program, while there are 150 undergraduate programs.
Within the next five years, PSU is expected to reach 200 graduate programs offered throughout its five campuses. The new programs offered in Phuket, Surat Thani and Trang campuses will integrate multiple faculties. Programs currently in high demand include Master's in Human Resource Management and Development, Arts, Humanities and Social and Management Sciences.
Associate Professor Dr. Piniti Ratananukul, Secretary General of the Office of the Higher Education Commission (OHEC), said that we have promoted graduate school education, creating new knowledge and innovation to enhance the country's competitiveness. While some fields, such as business administration, require work experience, others, such as science and technology, require continuous education in order to maintain knowledge and competitiveness.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nantana Gajaseni, Executive Director of the ASEAN University Network (AUN), stated that the development of cooperation between universities in the ASEAN region will be useful for researchers, advisors and students, when provided with the opportunity to conduct research together. Currently, universities in Thailand are acknowledged both on the regional and on the international level.
