Quality of Life in Education and Career Promoting for ASEAN Community

Abstract

To gain benefits from being a part of ASEAN Community in 2015, Thai people and society shall requires kinds of preparation. This research aimed to examine Thai people’s quality of life in education and career and their obstacles when Thailand becomes the ASEAN Community, and to provide ways for preparation. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were employed in this study. The data was collected through a questionnaire from 200 university students in related fields, and interviews with related academics. The results revealed that, being ASEAN Community, Thai educational quality shall gain benefits from increasing academic and cultural exchanges, as well as social activities, which will lead to a higher quality of life. Nevertheless, there can be some troubles in the educational system and evaluation, including the improper making use of learning resource and tools, which are found to be different among parts of Thailand. English language proficiency, in particular, is found to be an important factor influencing the quality of life. When examining the quality of life in career, health related careers, which include physician, dentist, and nurse, are revealed to attract foreign patients, possibly due to their higher trainings than other Asian countries. Thai accountants, engineers, and architects are also found to have great potential like those in other countries. Unfortunately, they are found to have problems in English language proficiency and information technology. Although Thailand is famous for its tourist attraction, and hospitality, the increasing crimes among tourists is destroying Thailand’s reputation on tourist’s safety. The study suggested 2 main strategies for educational and career preparation in becoming ASEAN Community. The first strategy is international education encouragement, as well as enhancing teaching practices and promoting practical English language. Finally, the second strategy is human development by increasing more practical practices, student exchanges, knowledge on ASEAN, English language, and other ASEAN languages proficiency.