Triam Udom Suksa School

Triam Udom Suksa School is a state school located in central Bangkok, Thailand. It admits upper-secondary students (mathayom 4–6, equivalent to grades 10–12) and has the largest yearly enrolment in the country. Founded in 1938 as a preparatory school for Chulalongkorn University, the school has long been regarded as one of the best secondary schools in Thailand, and attracts students from all over the country in its highly competitive entrance examinations. Triam Udom Suksa has among the highest university entry rates for Thai schools, and its students consistently score among the top in national standardised tests.HistoryThe founding of Triam Udom Suksa School relates to the revised National Education Plan of BE 2479, which imposed four and six years of primary and secondary education respectively, with an additional two years of pre-collegiate schooling required for students who were to pursue higher education. This pre-collegiate level was to be initially provided by the students' prospective universities, and accordingly the University Council of Chulalongkorn University authorised the establishment of such a school on 3 January 1938. The founding of the school, which took place over a tight time frame of three months, was overseen by Mom Luang Pin Malakul, then head of the university's teacher-preparation programme, who became the school's first director. The school took over the location of Matthayom Horwang School on Phaya Thai Road in the vicinity of the university, and became known as the "University Preparatory School, Chulalongkorn University", or Rong Rian Triam Udom Suksa Haeng Chulalongkorn Maha Witthayalai . The school, which was the first co-educational in the country, opened on 16 May 1938, and classes began on 19 May.