Chulalongkorn, standing proud in Thailand
Facts about Chulalongkorn Univ.
Located in Bangkok, Chulalongkorn is the best university in Thailand; with a long history and prestige that all Thais highly recognize and respect. With the name derived from King Chulalongkorn, respected as one of the wisest rulers, it was established in 1917 as the first institution of higher learning. There are 18 colleges ranging from Law, Science, to Medicine and Nursing. People may underestimate Chulalongkorn since they are not that interested in taking their exchange programs in Southeast Asia. However, in fact, Chulalongkorn Univ. ranked much higher than Yonsei Univ. and Korea Univ. in the 2005 *The Times*’ ranking of world’s top universities.
High quality International BBA Program
Exchange students take the International BBA (Bachelor of Business Administration) program provided by the school. It is fully administered in English therefore students are free from language barriers. The quality of the lectures was repeatedly praised by those who have been to Chulalongkorn. Jin Jae-hoon (Sr., School of Business), who was an exchange student to Chulalongkorn last year says that “I liked all the subjects I took at Chulalongkorn. I was especially satisfied with the ‘Current Issues in Finance’ class in which we could listen to a variety of experiences from some famous invited guests.” Park Ji-yoon (Sr., School of Business), another exchange student to Chulalongkorn, states that “There are many Thai professors and also a considerable ratio of foreign professors from many countries. I was impressed by the professor who taught ‘Human Resources Management’, who had a lot of experience in hotel management in Switzerland. His lecture was full of passion and he was excellent in encouraging students’ participation.” They say that the overall atmosphere of the classes in the BBA program was different from that of Yonsei in that they involved a lot of debate sessions.
Living outside the classroom
The participants say that they were satisfied with their lives in Bangkok. “The school provides exchange students with an apartment fully equipped with a swimming pool as well as fitness center. It was only 10 minutes by bus so it was easy to attend classes.” says Park. A very unique aspect of Chulalongkorn Univ. is that wearing a school uniform is required. Jin says that “The good part about wearing a uniform was that we did not have any difficulty choosing what to wear to school. The fact that all students wear the same uniform regardless of their nationality was helpful in becoming closer to other students.” A wide variety of delicious Thai cuisine and many famous travel spots there are also very attractive aspects of studying in Thailand.
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Though it is not a widely known school for exchange students, Chulalongkorn is surely a nice school for students to experience a different culture in nearby in Asia. I challenge you to take part in Chulalongkorn Univ. exchange student and feel the prestige of attending this noble school as well as widening your knowledge.