NSTDA recently launched Total Innovation Management Enterprise or TIME. TIME is a new manpower development program aiming at developing highly skilled workforce to support tech industry which is considered new engines of growth. This program is built upon the successful pilot Work-integrated Learning (WiL) program previously implemented by the Office of National Higher Education Science Research and Innovation Policy Council (NXPO), in which industry working experience was incorporated into the vocational education curriculum.
Implemented by TMC-NSTDA, TIME is a program that provides vocational, undergraduate and graduate students opportunities to serve apprenticeships in industry to prepare Thai graduates to meet the technical demands of the industry. TIME has two sub-programs, one designed for vocational and undergraduate students and the other for graduate students. In the vocational and undergraduate sub-program, students are placed in paid positions in the industry, and attend after-hours and weekends classes; whereas in the graduate sub-program, students work full-time in the industry while being enrolled in a 2-year master degree program that integrate academic content with industry experience which will form a basis for students’ thesis projects.
The launch was announced at a seminar on Thailand Plus Package, the latest instrument devised by the Thai Government to attract more foreign investment, especially to expedite investments from companies seeking to relocate as a result of the ongoing trade war. The new package covers comprehensive measures that include investment acceleration incentives, fiscal measures supporting STEM manpower development, deregulation, and improved pre-and post-investment services.
