Asean Countries Put Education Up Front

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - In the 10 countries that are part of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, there are 600 million people and higher education varies greatly.

Singapore has two universities that often place well on lists of international university rankings. Laos, which established its national university in 1996 has a collection of "eclectic institutions" according to an interesting article on Asean higher education in the October 10th edition of the International Herald Tribune.

While raising standards and numbers of students has become a priority for economic development, there are still not sufficient graduates for labor markets in Cambodia and Vietnam.

In 2007, the Asean University Network, AUN, began operating a regional quality assurance program to assess undergraduate programs.

The association is working to reverse the "Look West" trend in which many students prefer studying in the US and Britain by developing an Asean credit transfer system. A good example of globalism.

Reported By Dr. Marciene Mattleman, KYW Newsradio