Surrey graduate who became Prime Minister of Thailand meets Vice-Chancellor-led delegation

On Tuesday, 15 October, a senior delegation from the University of Surrey, led by Professor Max Lu, Surrey’s President and Vice-Chancellor, met with Thailand’s Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who studied for her MSc in International Hotel Management at Surrey’s School of Hospitality and Tourism Management (SHTM), graduating in 2009.

Pictured (left to right) Dr Lian Liu, Professor Bob Nichol, Patrick Degg, Professor Max Lu, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Maris Sangiampongsa and Professor Iis Tussyadiah.

During her time at Surrey, Prime Minister Shinawatra studied the latest trends and innovations in the highly competitive and dynamic global hospitality industry.

SHTM is ranked 2nd for hospitality and tourism management in the Shanghai Ranking’s Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2023, 1st in the UK and 15th in the world in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024, and 1st for tourism in the UK’s Complete University Guide 2025. The School has a strong track record in developing the next generation of industry leaders who apply their knowledge and experience to lead in global hospitality businesses and shape the future of the sector.

Other notable SHTM alumni include Robert Earl, Founder and CEO of Planet Hollywood; Sarmad Nabil Zok, Chairman, CEO and Founder at Kingdom Hotel Investments; Benson Puah, Founding Chief Executive Officer at Esplanade Co Ltd; and Yiannis Ioannou, Minister of Transport, Communication & Works, Republic of Cyprus. Alongside the Prime Minister of Thailand, these are just some of SHTM’s formidable international alumni network.

The meeting with Thailand’s Prime Minister also included the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Maris Sangiampongsa, also pictured above. It formed part of a wider Surrey visit to Southeast Asia, where the team is hosting a series of alumni engagements, meetings with partner universities, industry and government stakeholders, and high-level networking opportunities.

It was an honour to meet Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra today. It is always a pleasure to meet our alumni on my international visits, and to hear about their careers and their achievements. We are meeting many alumni on this visit, but I am, of course, especially honoured to meet an alumna so recently elected as Prime Minister here in Thailand.

Our visit to Southeast Asia is an opportunity for us to advance our ambitious plans for research collaboration in space technology development, energy and decarbonisation, and sustainable tourism. We’re also looking to extend our proud tradition of welcoming students from Thailand to benefit from our many globally recognised courses. Professor Lu, Max, President and Vice-Chancellor

SHTM is ranked 2^nd for hospitality and tourism management in the Shanghai Ranking’s Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2023, 1^st in the UK and 15th in the world in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024, and 1^st for tourism in the UK’s Complete University Guide 2025.