Walailak University at a glance
Walailak University is a public, state-funded comprehensive university at 222 Thai Buri in Tha Sala District -- the next district north of Mueang Nakhon Si Thammarat, so the campus sits outside the provincial capital entirely rather than in it. Its founding legislation was formally approved on 29 March 1992 (the university's Foundation Day), and it was named in February 1992 after Princess Chulabhorn Walailak, the second name of King Bhumibol Adulyadej's youngest daughter. Around 70 school leavers enrolled on 23 May 1998 and the first class began five days later, on 28 May 1998.
Unlike most Thai public universities, Walailak is given a high degree of institutional autonomy. It runs as a residential campus with on-site housing for students and staff, its own teaching hospital, a botanic park and a sports complex, and offers programmes spanning medicine, dentistry, veterinary science, allied health, engineering, management and liberal arts through faculties including the International College of Dentistry, School of Allied Health Sciences and Akkhraratchakumari Veterinary College. Beyond the Tha Sala campus the university also keeps a coordinating office in Bangkok and a service centre in neighbouring Surat Thani province.
Scale matters if you are househunting around it: the university's own published figures put the campus at roughly 14,900 current students, about 3,400 staff, 22 schools and colleges and 227 academic programmes. That is a small town's worth of people in a rural district, and it is the single biggest driver of rental demand anywhere in Nakhon Si Thammarat outside the city centre.
Notable facts
- Largest single university campus in Thailand by land area -- 3,600 acres, a figure re-verified against Walailak's own History and Overview page
- Autonomous public university, with more institutional independence than most Thai state universities
- Runs its own teaching hospital, WU Hospital, on campus, alongside a botanic park and sports complex
- Residential by design -- staff and student accommodation is on site, because the campus is not in the city
- Named after Princess Chulabhorn Walailak, King Bhumibol Adulyadej's youngest daughter
BAANLYY does not rank, endorse or accept payment from universities. The location, history and programme facts on this page were taken from Walailak University's own published pages and re-checked on 1 September 2026; we publish no fee figures, and admissions, programmes and tuition change every intake — always confirm those directly. Visit the official Walailak University website →
Sources & References
Primary and official sources are cited above. Government rules, fees and procedures in Thailand change over time and vary by office; always confirm current requirements with the relevant authority before relying on them. BAANLYY never takes paid placement in editorial content.
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