Highlights:

• Institutional Commitment & Recognition: Pioneer higher education institution in Thailand supporting 70 students and 14 staff with disabilities, earning the top-tier ‘Accessible Place 2023’ excellent award and four Friendly Design Awards 2023.
• Universal Design Physical Infrastructure: Comprehensive campus-wide renovations completed across 25+ projects since 2012, featuring wheelchair ramps across all dormitories, accessible restrooms, tactile sidewalk paving, elevators with Braille buttons and voice announcements, and accessible EV shuttle buses.
• Specialized Learning & Media Facilities: Purpose-built academic environments including Puey Ungphakorn Library tactile block walkways, interactive tactile museum exhibitions at Thammasat Museum of Anthropology, and a dedicated service center equipped with 28 screen-reader workstations and 4 recording rooms.
• Key Projects & National UD Audit Standards: Strategic milestones ranging from the Incluseum101 tactile museum project and Equality Park public space testing to the nationwide launch of the Universal Design Audit (UD Audit) certification standards.

Institutional Commitment, Policy, and National Recognition

Thammasat University stands as a pioneering higher education institution in Thailand in establishing comprehensive educational opportunities and physical facilities support for individuals with disabilities. Under the framework of SDG 10 (Reduce Inequality), the university enforces a strict institutional policy to guarantee full physical accessibility across all buildings, public spaces, and campus facilities. Currently, Thammasat University supports 73 students with disabilities and employs 13 staff members with disabilities who serve in diverse professional roles including technical officers, analysts, practitioners, and educators.

In recognition of its outstanding leadership in universal design, Thammasat University was honored with the prestigious the ‘Accessible Place 2023’ excellent award by the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security in collaboration with the Association of Persons with Disabilities Council of Thailand, being the sole organization to receive the highest-level award that year.

Furthermore, the university secured four ‘Friendly Design Awards 2023’ during the 7th Thailand Friendly Design Expo, marking six consecutive years of national leadership in inclusive education and accessible architecture.

Universal Design Physical Infrastructure and Accessible Facilities around Campus

Since 2012, the Disability Support Services Center at Thammasat University has executed more than 25 physical renovation projects to transform university grounds into an exemplary Universal Design environment. Structural improvements include continuous wheelchair ramps, accessible restrooms, handicap parking bays, tactile braille blocks along major sidewalks, and modified elevators. Across various faculties such as Medicine, Social Sciences, and Sciences, elevators are retrofitted with Braille floor buttons, voice announcement systems, and tactile floor maps for visually impaired individuals.

For residential life, the Thammasat University Property and Sports Management Office guarantees campus dormitory accommodation for every student with disabilities who requests housing. Dormitories feature international-standard wheelchair ramps at building entrances, holding rails in bathrooms, accessible kitchen sinks, modified closets, and allocated volunteer buddies. Additionally, campus transit has been upgraded with a fleet of fully accessible electric (EV) shuttle buses equipped with wheelchair ramps and secure spaces.

Dormitory Reservation for Students with Disabilities_Thammasat University Rangsit Campus

For dormitory applications at the Rangsit Campus, students can apply online and fill out your details through online registration. Disabled students can fill out the dormitory reservation form with the necessary information so that the appropriate dormitories could be allocated for them.

Students can specify their gender (Gender) according to their preference, and this will not affect the selection process. However, the office will assign dormitories based on the student’s biological gender.

Specialized Academic, Library, and Service Facilities

Academic and recreational facilities at Thammasat University are specifically tailored to foster total independence for disabled students and visitors. The Puey Ungphakorn Library and Learning Center features entrance ramps, renovated 1st-floor accessible restrooms, wide bookshelf aisles allowing independent wheelchair navigation, and continuous tactile block pathways guiding visually impaired students directly from library entrances to study and meeting rooms.

In cultural learning spaces, the Thammasat Museum of Anthropology breaks traditional accessibility barriers through Universal Design exhibition layouts that integrate audio descriptions, tactile 3D models, and Braille descriptions.

To support academic success, the Disability Support Services Center operates a specialized common room and office space open Monday through Saturday. This facility is equipped with 4 recording rooms, 28 computer sets installed with screen reader software, and image enlarging devices, enabling staff and students to produce accessible instructional media and engage in collaborative learning.

Key Strategic Projects and Activities

During 2025, Thammasat University organized and executed four primary strategic projects specifically addressing the accessible facilities for people with disabilities.

March 2025 — Incluseum101: Museum Accessible for Visually Impaired Persons Project: Organized by senior students of the Faculty of Social Administration (SW401 course) in collaboration with Thammasat Museum of Anthropology. The project enhanced museum learning accessibility at minimal cost by implementing smartphone audio descriptions via QR codes, Braille directional signage, and tactile raised QR indicators, actively involving visually impaired visitors to test and provide user feedback.

February 2026 — Opening of Equality Park for Testing and Evaluating Universal Design Public Space: Organized by Thammasat University Rangsit Campus to offer an inclusive outdoor public space designed under Universal Design principles. Community members with disabilities directly tested and evaluated outdoor ramps, walkways, and recreational infrastructure, providing valuable empirical assessments to optimize public space safety and usability.

April 2026 — Comprehensive Accessible Facilities and Services for Disabled Students at Puey Ungphakorn Library: Organized by Puey Ungphakorn Library and Learning Center to deliver barrier-free educational environments. Upgrades featured tactile block pathways connecting library gates to study rooms, exterior and interior ramps, renovated 1st-floor accessible restrooms, wide bookshelf aisles, and 28 screen-reader computer workstations.

June 2026 — Launch of the ‘UD Audit’ (Universal Design Audit) Programme and Certification Standards: Organized by the Universal Design Research Unit (UD-THAM) and Thammasat Universal Design Center (Thammasat-UDC) in partnership with the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Development and Human Security, and Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation at Regional Science Park 2, Nakhon Ratchasima. The initiative officially launched national UD Audit training and certification standards, transitioning physical building audits from legal compliance to performance-based usability and long-term maintenance auditing, supported by the professional manual ‘Assessing Accessibility for All’.