Americans place more emphasis on freedom than Asians do. While this is a large, sweeping generalization with more exceptions than I can count, it does seem to apply to the college selection process in Thailand.
Think about the time you applied to university. You studied hard to get good grades. You did extracurricular activities like the National Honor Society and debate club. And you took the ACT or SAT several times. In the American system, you can do poorly one area, like test taking, and still get into a pretty good college. In any case, your ACT or SAT scores do not prevent you from applying into good colleges.
Not so in Thailand. While talking to my Jojo, my coworker, I learned that the college system in Thailand focuses almost entirely on test scores and restricts applications to five colleges. Jojo explained that 15 years ago Thai college placement was based solely on results from the standardized test at the conclusion of high school. Not knowing what the scores would be, students simply listed their top five departments at various universities. The test score would determine which program you were assigned to. For instance, my coworker applied to different programs in the Chulalongkorn, Thammasat and Rongkomhang universities (which happen to be the three most prestigious in Thailand). Since she tested well, but not exceptionally, she got into her 3rd ranked choice—the arts program at Thammasat University rather than at Chulalongkorn, where she wanted to attend. Had she known her scores before hand, she would have applied for the communications department in Chulalongkorn University which was not as competitive as the arts program. In short, although Jojo tested well enough to attend the university of her choice, the structured Thai college entrance system made her go to a different university.
The United States differs significantly from the Thai system. First, in the United States we wouldn’t apply to schools without knowing our SAT scores. Second, us Americans would feel constrained by the only-choose-five-colleges formula that is common place for all Thai high school students. Thankfully, modern Thai now have grades to bolster their test scores (15 years ago high school grades didn’t matter at all). Still, the end of high school test still plays the dominating factor in current Thai college admissions.
The final major difference in Thai and American college admissions involves choosing a major. In Thailand, as in many other Asian countries, students have to choose their majors before entering university. Students apply to specific colleges within a university and are confined to that college until graduation. When I first went to Brigham Young University I had no idea what I would major in. I switched between business and economics colleges before settling on the international program at the Kennedy Center. Personally, the ability to switch between colleges allowed me to find a major that I was both good at and interested in. While forcing students to decide on a major before college, as happens in Thailand, probably lessens time at college, I wonder disadvantages it brings to college graduates. I wonder if there is more dissatisfaction during college years, or if a greater percentage of Thai graduates change fields than their American counterparts.
Think about the time you applied to university. You studied hard to get good grades. You did extracurricular activities like the National Honor Society and debate club. And you took the ACT or SAT several times. In the American system, you can do poorly one area, like test taking, and still get into a pretty good college. In any case, your ACT or SAT scores do not prevent you from applying into good colleges.
Not so in Thailand. While talking to my Jojo, my coworker, I learned that the college system in Thailand focuses almost entirely on test scores and restricts applications to five colleges. Jojo explained that 15 years ago Thai college placement was based solely on results from the standardized test at the conclusion of high school. Not knowing what the scores would be, students simply listed their top five departments at various universities. The test score would determine which program you were assigned to. For instance, my coworker applied to different programs in the Chulalongkorn, Thammasat and Rongkomhang universities (which happen to be the three most prestigious in Thailand). Since she tested well, but not exceptionally, she got into her 3rd ranked choice—the arts program at Thammasat University rather than at Chulalongkorn, where she wanted to attend. Had she known her scores before hand, she would have applied for the communications department in Chulalongkorn University which was not as competitive as the arts program. In short, although Jojo tested well enough to attend the university of her choice, the structured Thai college entrance system made her go to a different university.
The United States differs significantly from the Thai system. First, in the United States we wouldn’t apply to schools without knowing our SAT scores. Second, us Americans would feel constrained by the only-choose-five-colleges formula that is common place for all Thai high school students. Thankfully, modern Thai now have grades to bolster their test scores (15 years ago high school grades didn’t matter at all). Still, the end of high school test still plays the dominating factor in current Thai college admissions.
The final major difference in Thai and American college admissions involves choosing a major. In Thailand, as in many other Asian countries, students have to choose their majors before entering university. Students apply to specific colleges within a university and are confined to that college until graduation. When I first went to Brigham Young University I had no idea what I would major in. I switched between business and economics colleges before settling on the international program at the Kennedy Center. Personally, the ability to switch between colleges allowed me to find a major that I was both good at and interested in. While forcing students to decide on a major before college, as happens in Thailand, probably lessens time at college, I wonder disadvantages it brings to college graduates. I wonder if there is more dissatisfaction during college years, or if a greater percentage of Thai graduates change fields than their American counterparts.
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