18 INTERVIEW
First female apprentices of the BMW Group Thailand Dusita Kitjadtanee and Ratree Sriparch, Bangkaewfa Industrial and Community Education College BMW Group Thailand creates the groundwork for Thai students interested working in Automotive mechatronics technician through the dual vocational education and training under “BMW Service Apprentice Program” launched in 2012 which aims to train and develop apprentices in the real working area. This year marks the first time that has two female students joining the program, to support “gender equality” and empower women in the working society. It reflects on German-Thai Dual Excellence Education program (GTDEE)’s commitment to creating professional learning possibilities for Thai students at the vocational level, as well as improving the efficiency of Thailand’s vocational education system in parallel with BMW Group Thailand, and encouraging Thai automotive employees to have potential comparable to international standards under cooperation with local education institute in Thailand. UPDATE is pleased to interview the two students from Bangkaewfa Industrial and Community Education College Khun Dusita Kitjadtanee (Fang) and Khun Ratree Sriparch (Mei) on their experiences as the first females working under the BMW Group Thailand.
engines. We love the aesthetics and efficiency of European automobiles. Thus, we were attentive to join this program’s batch 10 in 2020. This is the first time in 10 years that the program has women joining. We are pleased to be the first female students of the program in which we could show our potential in doing jobs and tasks on the same level as men’s. Generally, women are more meticulous and careful to complete tasks with quality. Our experiences of joining the program is great. We could do many things related to car engines and components, also learned about the use of new technology in engine at the same time.
As being the first females of the BMW Service Apprentice Program, what are your experiences during the program and what was your expectation?
What are the strengths of training in the German standard vocational education system?
We are generally interested in cars and
Fang: After participating in the BMW Group Thailand Apprenticeship Program, everything was beyond my expectations, surprisingly with so many teachings and technology practices. Mei: Before starting the program, I expected it would teach me simply the fundamental knowledge of automobiles and engines, but there was a lot about complex technological research applied to real-life situations.
With German standard, the education system allows us to do actual works with real
“ For us, gender does not limit anything especially our potential to learn, work, and develop ourselves.” cars and engines. Moreover, it introduces advanced technology to the lessons. We got practical experiences and learnt about the theory related to our study fields. This is essential because they give us more in-depth understanding. It is different from the general education in terms of the practical parts that we get to do the actual work by ourselves at the dealer’s training. In your point of view, to what extent does gender affect the development of Thai youth? For us, gender does not limit anything especially our potential to learn, work, and develop ourselves. In our experiences, we are alleged that women would not be able to learn and work within this field of study. But we have shown that gender is not an obstacle and we could effectively learn and work in the automobile industry. What is your dream for a future career? Both of us wish to continue and work within BMW Group Thailand, while Fang aspires to be one of the trainers at BMW group in the future. Interviewed by GTCC team
Dusita Kitjadtanee (Fang)
Ratree Sriparch (Mei)
Training venue: BMW German Auto Chaengwattana Study: Bangkaewfa Industrial And Community Education College
Training venue: BMW Platino Motor, Nakhon Pathom Study: Bangkaewfa Industrial And Community Education College
UPDATE 2/2022
Contact details: Bangkaewfa Industrial and Community Education College akekk1512@gmail.com www.bkf.ac.th
