Rajabhat University system

The Rajabhat Universities (มหาวิทยาลัยราชภัฏ, RTGS: Mahawitthayalai Ratchaphat) are a group of public universities in Thailand that were originally founded as teacher training colleges.

In 1995, the Thai government elevated existing teacher training colleges to so-called Rajabhat Institutes. The transformation expanded the legal mandate of these institutions, granting them the authority to confer postgraduate degrees, including doctorates.^[1] Rajabhat Institutes were further transformed to Rajabhat Universities in 2005, allowing the institutions to function as independent universities.^[2]

There are currently 38 Rajabhat Universities. They are generally considered easier to gain admission to than the traditional public universities.^[3] Most Rajabhat Universities offer graduate degrees, some even to the doctoral level. Enrollments have been shrinking. As of 2018^[update], students numbered 540,000, down from 600,000.^[3]

Name

The word "Rajabhat" is derived from the same origin as the Hindi, "Rajput" (from Sanskrit raja-putra, "son of a king"). In this sense, a "Rajabhat University" might be regarded as being analogous to the English "King's College", or "Royal Institute", or more literally as a "Prince's University" ("Rajabhat" could be considered to mean "prince"). For simplicity they may be considered a "Royal University".