PSU General Assembly: pushing strategic objectives towards becoming a valuable university
On 25 July 2023, PSU organized its second General Assembly on the theme “Propelling Prince of Songkla University into the Future”. The brainstorming event was honored by Dr. Suvit Maesincee, honorary member of the University Council, while Asst. Prof. Dr. Pongthep Sutheravut, Vice President for Administration and Strategy, reported on the performance according to the resolution of the first General Assembly. PSU President Asst. Prof. Dr. Niwat Keawpradub gave a talk on the topic “Direction of Prince of Songkla University for the sustainable development of the country”, and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Thanit Chalermyanont, Vice President for Planning and Finance, gave a lecture on the topic “Moving towards becoming a valuable university with strategic objectives” Administrators and staff from PSU’s five campuses participated in the General Assembly at the PSU International Convention Center and online via Zoom.
Dr. Pongthep pointed out that the first PSU Assembly had brainstormed on three resolutions: human resource development as a national strength, creating and increasing the value of knowledge and innovation towards the development of the country, and transforming academic models and academic excellence. Several policy proposals have been put forward for each resolution, including the development of the education system, the development of supporting technology systems, lifelong education, value creation for academic knowledge towards national development, knowledge communication, creation of a research ecosystem, development of innovation investment system, and revision of the vision of the university, driving PSU towards becoming a valuable university, fostering global mobility and sustainable development.
Dr. Suvit explained that last year’s General Assembly is considered an important vision in the process of enabling participation of all sectors in the university community, and an important factor in the success of driving the fundamental workings of the university. The Assembly is to determine the direction of management and development of the university for the next four years, and can serve as a medium for mutual understanding among the PSU community. This way, all sectors, units, and members of the university community are aware of the directions and ideas that drive the university in the future, resulting in cooperation in integrating sciences for driving joint development. The university as a whole must come together to create and form a plan for important mega-projects that make a wide-ranging impact on all sectors of the country, and to drive PSU’s development strategy for 2023-2027 and beyond.
PSU President Dr. Niwat said that driving this vision emphasizes creating value for sustainable development at the forefront of the world. The vision of the PSU administration and staff of the past four years has been driving Prince of Songkla University toward becoming a valuable and notable university. While PSU is a regional university, its potential could elevate it from local to global renown. PSU will change the way of working together, to drive important issues of society which requires cooperation from many internal and external agencies, utilizing the role of universities as reliable and trustworthy institutions. Prince of Songkla University is ready to work with all sectors in any circumstances, looking towards the future for development. Hence, the Assembly at this stage focuses on strategic objectives in five areas, namely Agri-food, Health, Natural Resources and Environment, Multicultural Society, and Innovation and Tourism. These are Thailand's strengths, and therefore the main focus of the strategic objectives, combining forces between internal and external agencies of the university to create highly capable personnel for the country.
Dr. Thanit said that propelling PSU to become a valuable university with strategic objectives comes with goals like ranking in the Top 500 by QS Rankings as a research and innovation university, and becoming a key player in driving sustainable development for the southern region and the country by 2027. The five strategic objectives (SO) are SO1: Building food security and sustainable agriculture for well-being; SO2: Creating knowledge and innovation in health and medicine; SO3: Building sustainability of natural resources and the environment; SO4: Building a multicultural society and Suvarnabhumi way to sustainability; and SO5: Elevating innovation-based economy, creative economy, and high-value tourism.
The 12 focus areas are identified as Agriculture and High-value Processed Agriculture; Quality and Sustainable Tourism; the World's Major Electric Vehicle Production Base; High-value Medicine and Health; Gateway of Trade; Investment and Logistics; Digital and Smart Electronics Center; Strong, High-potential and Competitive SMEs; Smart Space and City; Intergenerational Poverty and Social Protection; Circular Economy and Low-carbon Society; Risk reduction from Natural Disasters; and High-performance Manpower.