In early 2016, representatives from nine Thai universities visited London in a bid to strike up academic collaborations with UK institutions and, in particular, to establish double, dual and joint degree programmes. Transnational education — where a British university offers courses outside the UK — has become a huge business. There are now 340,000 students pursuing UK qualifications worldwide, more than the number of non-European Union students in the UK.

Thai university representatives introduced their institutions in a bid to drum up interest. There was enthusiasm from both sides, but more than a few hurdles to overcome. Links between Thailand and universities overseas have grown in recent years, according to an analysis by Dr. William Lawton, a higher education consultant.

In 2011, there were 92 collaborative degrees offered in the country. By 2013, after a “pretty rapid increase”, there were 159, he told the British Council-organised event, the UK-Thailand TNE Presidents’ Forum, on January 18. China is the biggest player, accounting for 60 of these links, followed by the US (29), the UK (16), Australia (12), Japan (12) and France (11). “From a British perspective, Thailand has more international activity than we thought,” says Lawton.

One of the biggest obstacles to setting up courses in English is the relatively weak language skills of Thai students, he explains, an issue that was “said to be so serious that some students were unable to finish” their courses. Other problems include an immigration and visa bureaucracy that some UK universities felt was “uniquely difficult” and even comparable to the home of red tape itself — India. One of those interviewed by Dr. Lawton said it took “years of work just to get to a memorandum of understanding stage” with a Thai university. But some institutions were “willing to play the longer game” despite the difficulties involved. A more repressive political environment since a 2014 military coup is also causing jitters for potential partners. More than half the UK representatives, spoken to by Dr. Lawton, mentioned this instability as a deterring factor.

Nevertheless, for Western universities seeking links in the region, there are attractive alternatives to Thailand. The Vietnamese government is also very keen to encourage transnational higher education, says Lawton, and is seen as being easy to deal with, while Indonesia, with a population of 250 million, is viewed as a much bigger transnational education market. Overall, he concludes, “the relationship (between Thailand and the UK) is underperforming”.