UH Hilo adds Thai university to list of collaborators

The Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy (DKICP) at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo will expand collaborative academic and research projects in Thailand with a new exchange program agreement, made effective February 8.

Khon Kaen University (KKU) in northeastern Thailand has become the fifth Thai university to sign memorandums of agreements (MOUs) with DKICP. Other Thai schools of pharmacy with similar exchange agreements include Chulalongkorn University (2011), Rangsit University (2013), Silpakorn University (2014), and Siam University (2014).

The formal arrangement between the faculty of KKU’s pharmaceutical sciences and DKICP states that the two universities will jointly develop activities based on their academic and educational needs. Collaborations may include the exchange or research materials, support for distance learning courses, organization of joint research programs and the exchange of students, faculty and staff.

“Multiple student and faculty exchanges and visiting lecturers help us broaden our reputation for global pharmacy education and helps our students gain international, inter-professional perspectives both culturally and educationally,” DKICP Dean Carolyn Ma said. “Mutual benefits include research collaboration projects, practice and innovation collaborations, and faculty and preceptor development programs.”

Ma met with officials from KKU late last spring when she was a keynote speaker at the 2016 U.S.-Thai Consortium for Pharmacy Education in Thailand. She was able to tour multiple cities there with Professor and Interim Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Supakit Wongwiwatthananukit when they met with faculty, staff, and students from colleges of pharmacy from Thailand and the U.S.

“When DKICP became a member of the US-Thai Consortium in 2014, we committed to active involvement with colleges of pharmacy in order to give and receive the most out of our interactions,” Wongwiwatthananukit said. “It allows us not only to collaborate with our Thai partners but also to increase association with top U.S. schools, such as the University of Minnesota, University of Texas and Purdue University. The momentum we generate is a good direction for our students and faculty as well as for the visibility of UH Hilo.”

DKICP and KKU also are integrated by educational agreements with the Tsuzuki Education Group. In attending the 60th celebration in Fukushima, Japan last fall, Ma met again with KKU administrators to solidify their interest in proceeding with collaborations between the two universities.

“One great aspect about all these international ties is that we can share intellectual and professional ideas in true academic format. It helps us offer a broader global experience for everyone,” Ma said.