Khon Kaen University

Khon Kaen University (Thai: มหาวิทยาลัยขอนแก่น) or KKU (มข.) is a public research university in Thailand. It was the first university established in northeastern Thailand and remains the oldest and largest university in the region. The university is a hub of education in northeast Thailand. It is widely recognized university in Asia. KKU offers a wide range of programs: its comprehensive academic program offers 105 undergraduate majors, along with 129 master's degree programs, and 59 doctoral programs. Khon Kaen University was ranked 21st in Southeast Asia by Time Higher Education in 2009, and 4th in Thailand by The Office of Higher Education Commission.

History

In 1941, during the reign of the King Ananda Mahidol and during the time of Field Marshal Plaek Phibunsongkhram as prime minister, a plan was drawn up to improve continued education throughout Thailand. There were plans to open a university in Ubon Ratchathani Province, but the Second World War broke out. Thailand was forced into siding with Japan. Plans to build universities in northeast Thailand were shelved. It wasn't until 1960 that plans to open more institutions of further education in the northeast would resume.

In 1962, under the governance of Prime Minister Field Marshal Sarit Thanarat, the proposition to open an institution of further education in the academic fields of engineering and advanced agriculture was passed. Thus, the Khon Kaen Institute of Technology was born. It later became known as the "University of North East Thailand". Because there was no government office that would take responsibility for managing the university directly, the government set up a national education council. This council was responsible for establishing a national curriculum and obtaining assistance from abroad.

In 1963 the faculty's subcommittee established that the campus would be located approximately four kilometers from the city of Khon Kaen and would occupy approximately 3,300,000 m². In 1965 the prime minister's office officially changed the name of University of North East Thailand to Khon Kaen University. The university also received the authority to control its own affairs. It was once a tradition for Khon Kaen University students from the faculties of engineering and agriculture to engage in an annual inter-faculty sports brawl in the university's sports fields.

Faculties and colleges

Sithan Gate, Khon Kaen University

• Faculty of Agriculture
• Faculty of Dentistry
• Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences
• Faculty of Technology
• Faculty of Law
• Faculty of Nursing
• Faculty of Medicine (external link: Faculty of Medicine)
• Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences
• Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
• Faculty of Business Administration and Accountancy
• Faculty of Science
• Faculty of Engineering
• Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts
• Faculty of Education
• Faculty of Architecture
• Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
• Faculty of Public Health
• Graduate School
• Nong Khai Campus
• College of Local Administration
• International College (KKUIC)
• College of Graduate Study in Management (MBAKKU)

International collaboration

• University of Georgia, USA,
• College of Health Sciences Ahmad Yani Yogyakarta,
• South West University or Xinan University,
• Adelaide University,
• Deakin University,
• Gifu University,
• Hue University,
• International University,^[3]
• Kochi University,
• Kyoto University,
• Nanzan University,
• National University of Laos,
• Mie University,
• Muhammadiyah University,
• University of Tsukuba, Japan,
• Osaka University,
• Saga University,
• Thai Nguyen University,
• University of Canberra,
• University of Sydney,
• Fujita Health University,
• National University of Singapore,

Debate tournaments

In 2012, KKU won the bid to host university and high school students from schools from across the country for the eighth edition of the national debate tournament—the European Union-Thailand Intervarsity Debate Championship (also known as the 8th EU-TH). The tournament, sponsored by the European Union, was modeled on the European Universities Debating Championship (EUDC). The latest edition, the 9th EU-TH was held in May 2014.^[4]

Notable alumni

• Somsak Kiatsuranont: Speaker of the House of Representatives of Thailand
• Apichatpong Weerasethakul: film director, screenwriter, and film producer
• Surapong Tovichakchaikul: the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand

Footnotes

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Khon Kaen University.