Abstract
This study examines the perspectives of Cambodian provincial university students about Cambodia’s vision to transform itself into a knowledge-based society. The study employed a qualitative approach to gather data to answer three research questions. Based on in-depth interviews with 21 university students from three provinces, including Battambang, Siem Reap, and Svay Rieng, it was found that Cambodian university students had a superficial understanding of the term knowledge-based society. They were ambivalent, expressing both optimism and pessimism, when it came to Cambodian universities’ contributions to supporting Cambodia’s development into a knowledge society. The study also revealed a number of challenges facing university students in provincial Cambodia, such as limited access to educational resources and opportunities, inadequate opportunities for gaining practical knowledge and skills needed for the job market, and other issues of various nature. The study sheds light on how Cambodian university students perceive Cambodia’s aspirations for becoming a knowledge-based society and has implications for policy, practice, and future research.
Introduction
International organizations such as the World Bank and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) have promulgated that the ability to produce, use, and disseminate knowledge is at the core of a knowledge-based economy and a driver of economic productivity and growth (OECD, 1996; World Bank, 1999). The World Bank, for example, has published several key reports that highlight the role of knowledge in advancing the global knowledge-based economy (World Bank, 1999, 2007) and the role of higher education in enabling less developed countries to catch up with their developed counterparts (World Bank, 2000, 2009).
As the role of higher education has gained traction, more attention has been placed on the development of the higher education system, particularly on building the capacity of universities to produce knowledge and drive innovation through research (OECD, 1996; World Bank, 2002). As a result, universities in many developing countries have begun to feel the pressure of having to contribute to producing graduates that are qualified for the changing labor market in the 21st century (Heng, 2023). However, given their limited resources, many developing countries are facing numerous challenges in improving the quality of their higher education and enhancing the research capacity of their universities (Fussy, 2019). As Philip Altbach, a leading higher education scholar, observed: What we do know about the conditions of the academic profession and of academic work in the developing world is not positive. Conditions of work and levels of remuneration are inadequate, involvement in institutional governance is often very limited, and the autonomy to build both an academic career and academic programs in the university is often constrained. (Altbach, 2003, p. 1)
Against this backdrop, the present study is conducted to investigate the contributions of universities in Cambodia in supporting the country’s aspirations to transform itself into a knowledge-based society, a goal that Cambodia has recently begun to emphasize (MoEYS, 2019). The study specifically aims to investigate the perspectives of Cambodian provincial university students enrolled in bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees regarding the role of universities in supporting Cambodia’s aspirations for knowledge society. As Cambodia’s ambitions to become a knowledge-based society have received little scholarly attention (Heng, 2023), this study intends to fill this knowledge gap and shed light on how Cambodian provincial university students understand Cambodia’s vision for a knowledge-based society.
The present study is useful for policymakers and relevant stakeholders, such as Cambodian government institutions, development partners, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and Cambodian higher education institutions (HEIs), in their efforts to promote education quality and research capacity in Cambodian higher education (for a review of recent developments in academic research in Cambodia, see Heng & Sol, 2021). The findings of the study are also useful for researchers, teachers, and students who are interested in understanding how Cambodian university students based in the provinces perceive Cambodia’s aspirations to become a knowledge society.
This study seeks to answer three research questions:
How do Cambodian provincial university students perceive the concept of a knowledge-based society?
How do Cambodian provincial university students perceive the role of Cambodian universities in supporting Cambodia’s vision to become a knowledge-based society?
What challenges do Cambodian provincial university students face in preparing themselves for a knowledge-based society?
Defining a Knowledge-Based Society
The term “knowledge-based society” refers to a well-educated society that relies on the knowledge of its citizens to stimulate innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic development (Djoub, 2017; Grbić et al., 2020). In the fast-changing modern world, innovative capacity and competitive advantage are vital to ensure the economic growth of each country (Răulea et al., 2016), making knowledge the primary resource for driving changes (Šlaus, 2007). Analysis of post-industrialized countries, such as the United States and countries in western Europe, showed that 70% to 80% of their growth was achieved by the contribution of new knowledge (Nyíri, 2002). Moreover, the notion of a knowledge-based society is also perceived as a prerequisite for a sustainable society which is “a society of active, healthy, educated, free, creative and happy persons and their diverse developing and evolving cultures; with strong and mutually supportive linkages among biological, ecological, physical, economic, business, social, R&D (research and development) and political systems” (Šlaus, 2007, p. 989). Toward a knowledge-based society, the call for better education, especially higher education, is at a high peak in order for a country to develop human capital capable of keeping up with the growing complexity of work processes and modern economic activities (Poltermann, 2014).
In a knowledge-based society, universities and research institutes play a pivotal role in creating new knowledge and stimulating innovation (OECD, 1996). As Etzkowitz et al. (2000) argued, universities are “a knowledge producing and disseminating institution” (p. 314). They are, according to Altbach (2013), “at the center of the global knowledge economy” (p. 316) and are “central to the transition to modernity in Europe and America and later in the rest of the world” (Delanty, 2001, p. 150). In addition, as a knowledge-based society depends on knowledge and the ability of individuals to create, use, and disseminate knowledge to drive development and innovation, the role of universities and other knowledge-generating institutions has become increasingly important. As Breznitz (2014) noted: Universities, viewed as fountains of knowledge, produce the world’s most important resources: young minds and an educated labor force, which in turn produce cutting-edge research and innovative ideas and products that contribute directly to economic development. (p. 1)
Likewise, Eam (2022) argued that the role of universities and other higher education institutions is “central and foundational” in a knowledge-based society (p. 29). They are the engines of social development as they play a crucial role in preserving, producing, innovating, and transmitting knowledge needed to facilitate research, innovation, and policy formulation (Eam, 2022). Ranga and Etzkowitz (2013) also noted that innovation and economic development rely on the important role of universities and “the hybridization of elements from university, industry and government to generate new institutional and social formats for the production, transfer and application of knowledge” (p. 238).
Developing Knowledge-Based Societies
The OECD was among the first international organizations to discuss the development of a knowledge-based economy, as evidenced by its report, entitled “The Knowledge-Based Economy” (OECD, 1996). The term “knowledge-based economy,” sometimes used interchangeably with the term “knowledge-based society,” refers to “an economy that creates, disseminates, and uses knowledge to enhance its growth and development” (Dahlman & Utz, 2005, p. xvi). The OECD (1996) noted that knowledge had been increasingly recognized as “the driver of productivity and economic growth and that knowledge and technology were essential for the development of a knowledge-based economy” (p. 3). In a knowledge-based economy, the roles of research institutes and HEIs are essential for knowledge production (creating new knowledge), knowledge transmission (educating people), and knowledge transfer (using knowledge to solve problems) (OECD, 1999). According to the World Bank (2007), four pillars were essential for developing a knowledge-based economy. They included “an educated and skilled labor force, a dense and modern information infrastructure, an effective innovation system, and an institutional regime that offers incentives for the efficient creation, dissemination, and use of existing knowledge” (World Bank, 2007, p. 23).
As for the development of knowledge-based societies, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO, 2005) noted that three pillars were fundamental, including an understanding of the value of the existing knowledge a country possesses; full participation from all stakeholders in producing and using knowledge; and effective formulation and integration of knowledge policies, including education and research policies, in society. UNESCO (2005) also recommended investing in improving the quality of education, information and communication technologies, and knowledge production and dissemination capabilities, among other recommendations. Likewise, Dahlman and Utz (2005), writing about India’s aspirations to become a knowledge-based economy, discussed four pillars essential for developing a knowledge-based economy or society. These pillars included:
Strengthening the economic and institutional regime
Developing educated and skilled workers
Creating an efficient innovation system
Building a dynamic information infrastructure. (p. xvii)
Thus, building a knowledge-based society depends on improving the education and research systems to produce educated and skilled workforce needed to spur economic growth and innovation, which in turn facilitate and accelerate the development of a knowledge-based society.
Cambodia’s Vision to Become a Knowledge-Based Society
Cambodia envisions to become an upper-middle-income country by 2030 and a high-income country by 2050 (Royal Government of Cambodia [RGC], 2018). In its Rectangular Strategies for Growth, Employment, Equity, and Efficiency (Phase IV), the Cambodian government outlined four priority areas (people, road, electricity, and water), with the emphasis on people. For example, this policy document stated: Human resource development is considered the priority of the Rectangular Strategy in every stage, and in particular, has become the first priority in the stage 3 and stage 4, aimed at improving education, vocational skills, competence, entrepreneurship, creativity, innovation, virtue, morality, patriotism and sense of responsibility, health and physical fitness, women’s roles and social protection. (RGC, 2018, p. 20)
Meanwhile, the country also aspires to become a knowledge-based society. In its latest Education Strategic Plan 2019–2023, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport (MoEYS) of Cambodia has emphasized the need to transform the country into a knowledge-based society (MoEYS, 2019). The document stated that the vision of MoEYS is to “establish and develop human resources that are of the very highest quality and are ethically sound in order to develop a knowledge-based society within Cambodia” (MoEYS, 2019, p. 18). To promote the quality and relevance of education, improve sectoral and institutional governance, and encourage research, MoEYS has embarked on a number of key projects such as Secondary Education Improvement Project (SEIP), General Education Improvement Project (GEIP), Higher Education Quality and Capacity Improvement Project (HEQCIP), and Higher Education Improvement Project (HEIP) (Heng & Heng, 2023). In higher education, HEQCIP and HEIP are the major projects that receive assistance and loans from the World Bank. Valued at USD 115.5 million in total, these projects have made significant improvement to Cambodia’s higher education sector, particularly in terms of infrastructure development, capacity building, and research (Heng, 2020b; Heng & Sol, 2021). Despite these developments, many challenges remain, creating doubts about Cambodia’s ability to achieve its vision to become a knowledge-based society.
Challenges to Realizing Cambodia’s Vision to Become a Knowledge-Based Society
Challenges to Cambodian Higher Education Development
After gaining complete independence from France in 1953, Cambodia embarked on developing its education system, with higher education seeing relative growth during the Sangkum Reastr Niyum (People’s Socialist Community) under the leadership of Prince Norodom Sihanouk from 1955 to 1970 despite shortcomings in financing and education quality (Pit & Ford, 2004). Following that, the development of higher education in Cambodia suffered horrendously from prolonged civil wars, the Khmer Rouge regime, and the subsequent need to get the basic education system to function once again (Ahrens & McNamara, 2013). In the late 1990s, Cambodian higher education began to develop again when privatization was introduced in 1997, triggering a quick rise in both the number of HEIs and student enrollment (Un & Sok, 2018). However, along with this rapid expansion, numerous challenges have continued to hinder Cambodian higher education from flourishing.
One of the key challenges to the development of Cambodian higher education is the limited public funding (Hayden, 2019; Mak et al., 2019a). It was reported that regionally, Cambodia was one of the countries that invested the least in its higher education sub-sector (Mak et al., 2019a). For comparison, the world average expenditure on higher education is around 1% of a country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), while Cambodia has spent less than 0.01% of its GDP on higher education (Mak et al., 2019a). Because of this meager public funding, most HEIs in Cambodia rely heavily on income from students’ tuition fees (Heng, 2021b; Ros & Sol, 2021). With such limited public funding, improvements in institutional resources and facilities are severely hampered, significantly affecting the quality of Cambodian higher education (Hayden, 2019; Mak et al., 2019a).
Another vital challenge to the development of Cambodian higher education concerns the limited qualifications of lecturers/teachers. It was reported that the average post-secondary education held by most Cambodian lecturers was about 5.5 years (Williams et al., 2014). This limited post-secondary education of Cambodian lecturers is a crystal clear indication of their insufficient qualifications to perform teaching and conduct research at the higher education level, which is regarded as of fundamental importance to enhancing the quality of Cambodian higher education. The 2022 Education Congress report also pointed to the limited qualifications of Cambodian lecturers. Among 16,438 higher education staff (3,518 females), 24.01% held bachelor’s degrees, 67.24% held master’s degrees, and only 8.74% had PhDs (MoEYS, 2022). While only a small number of higher education personnel hold PhDs, some researchers explicitly expressed concerns over the quality of some locally earned doctorates due to ineffective quality control, regulations, and enforcement (Heng, 2021b; Thun, 2021). This situation was referred to as “PhD inflation”—a result of an easy path to receive a PhD from some Cambodian universities (Thun, 2021).
In terms of higher education governance, there is an issue with the fragmentation of the system. According to MoEYS (2023), Cambodia now has 132 HEIs, of which 84 (63.63%) are privately owned. These HEIs are under the supervision of 14 different ministries and two state institutions (MoEYS, 2023). This situation indicates severe fragmentation of higher education governance in Cambodia. Mak et al. (2019b) asserted that such fragmented governance did not provide enabling conditions to ease meaningful interventions and investments in Cambodian higher education to support national development. Furthermore, cooperation and collaboration across those governing ministries and institutions appear to be limited, and a regular mechanism for such dialog seems non-existent (Mak et al., 2019b).
Other critical challenges to higher education development in Cambodia include, among others, limited research capacity and outputs (Eam, 2016; Heng et al., 2022a, 2022b), lack of institutional autonomy (Chet, 2009; Hayden, 2019), inadequate resources and facilities (Dem, 2017; Hayden, 2019), low salaries for academic staff (Heng et al., 2022b; Ros & Oleksiyenko, 2018), limited academic freedom (Chet, 2009; Heng, 2020a); limited professional development opportunities (Doeur & Heng, 2023; Ros & Oleksiyenko, 2018), and weak stakeholder involvement and collaboration (Sam & Dahles, 2017).
Challenges to Research Development in Cambodian Higher Education
Despite some positive developments in academic research in Cambodia over the past decade (see Heng & Heng, 2023; Heng & Sol, 2021), many challenges remain, which continue to limit the development of academic research in Cambodian higher education. Although there is considerable scholarly attention on research development in Cambodia (see, e.g., Heng & Sol, 2021; Kwok et al., 2010), several studies are worth reviewing to provide a big picture of the development of research in Cambodian higher education and in Cambodia more broadly.
A key study is that of Kwok et al. (2010) who found a number of critical challenges hindering research development in Cambodia. The challenges ranged from a general lack of research culture and capacity in many Cambodian universities to the absence of a clear research policy and institutional mechanisms to support and promote faculty research. Another study was conducted by the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace (CICP, 2016) which found similar challenges to research development in Cambodia. Key challenges included a shortage of competent local researchers, insufficient research infrastructure and funding, and limited research freedom on critical social issues, among others.
A report by MoEYS (2021) also recognized several major challenges to research development in Cambodia, including a shortage of full-time faculty members, the low number of academics with doctoral qualifications, limited investment in research and faculty resources, and a lack of capacity and experience in research and scientific publication among faculty members. Moreover, as a study by Ros et al. (2020) showed, the lack of research funding, inadequate research infrastructure, and heavy teaching workloads were some of the key barriers to Cambodian academics’ research endeavors.
Recent studies by Heng et al. (2022a, 2022b) have also identified key barriers preventing Cambodian academics from engaging in research. They included a heavy focus on teaching due to low academic salaries, the absence of well-defined academic career paths, an ineffective research environment, a lack of meaningful connection between teaching and research, and a general lack of a national research culture. Likewise, Heng and Sol (2022) emphasized three key challenges facing Cambodian higher education, namely prevalent skills mismatches among graduates, limited research activities and productivity among academics, and fragmentation in higher education governance. Another study by Heng (2022b) examined Cambodian youth’s research engagement and found three types of challenges preventing young Cambodians from being involved in research. They included a lack of knowledge about research, an unsupportive research environment, and challenges related to time, finance, and attitude.
Overall, there remain many challenges to developing research and quality education in Cambodian higher education, causing concern about how Cambodia can achieve its development vision, including the aspirations to become a knowledge-based society.
Research Into Cambodia’s Vision to Become a Knowledge-Based Society
Little is known about Cambodia’s vision to become a knowledge-based society. A recent study by Heng (2023) shed light on this issue from the perspectives of Cambodian university students. Based on data from in-depth interviews with 20 Cambodian university students (seven were females and four were PhD students), Heng found that Cambodian university students had a limited and mixed understanding of the concept of a knowledge-based society. The students also believed that Cambodian universities had moderate contributions to developing a knowledge-based society in Cambodia.
Heng (2022a) also discussed the issue concerning Cambodia’s aspirations to become a knowledge-based society. He noted that Cambodia’s higher education performance was low, ranked 124th out of 138 countries globally in 2017, making it difficult for the country to realize its vision to become a knowledge society. It was suggested that Cambodia should focus on developing the quality of its education and improve its research and innovation capacity, while learning from the ideology and leadership that once made it an empire (i.e., Khmer Empire) able to build the famous Angkor Wat temple (Heng, 2022a).
A few other studies mentioned Cambodia’s aspirations to become a knowledge-based society but did not deal with this topic in detail. Heng (2021a) and Heng et al. (2023), for example, mentioned the various challenges facing Cambodia’s higher education, thereby affecting the country’s ability to transform itself into a knowledge-based society. As Heng et al. (2023) noted, due to its low quality, Cambodia’s higher education “may not be ready to support Cambodia’s aspirations to become a knowledge-based society and improve the country’s competitiveness in the context of globalization and the global knowledge economy” (p. 312).
Thus, it is obvious that there is a paucity of research examining this topic, emphasizing the need for conducting the present study to expand the existing body of knowledge in this area. This study, therefore, aims to shed light on Cambodia’s vision to become a knowledge-based society by examining the perspectives of Cambodian university students, one of the key stakeholders in Cambodian higher education.
Methodology
Research Design
This study was designed as a qualitative case study, informed by constructivism which sees knowledge and reality as multiple and socially constructed (Crotty, 1998). In other words, knowledge and reality can be created by a dynamic interaction between the researcher and the research participant. The present study employed in-depth interviews as a method of data collection. In addition, relevant policy documents, such as the Policy on Higher Education 2030, the Education Strategic Plan 2019–2023, the Higher Education Strategy 2021–2030, among other documents, were also reviewed to gain a better understanding of the phenomenon under study.
Research Settings and Participants
This study involved the student participants from three universities located in Battambang (University A), Siem Reap (University B), and Svay Rieng (University C). The university in Siem Reap was a private university, while the other universities were public institutions. The students who participated in this study were pursuing their bachelor’s and master’s degrees. There were 21 students who participated in the interviews. They were recruited through a purposive sampling method, taking into their gender, level of study, major, and interest in the study. Among them, there were seven females, 14 males, 11 bachelor’s degree students, and 10 master’s degree students. Seven students were in science-related majors (e.g., Agriculture, Engineering, Information Technology), while 14 were pursuing social science majors (e.g., Business Administration, Banking and Finance, English). The profiles of the participants are provided in Table 1.
Participants’ Profiles.
Data Collection
In-depth interviews were used to collect data for the study. The interviews were conducted with students enrolled in bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in three provinces in Cambodia. Initially, 30 students enrolled in bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs were to be recruited for one-on-one interviews; however, due to the time constraints of the researcher and the participants as well as the difficulty in approaching potential participants in the provinces, only 21 students pursuing bachelor’s and master’s degrees were interviewed.
Seven of the interviews were carried out face-to-face and 14 were online interviews. The online interviews were conducted and recorded using Zoom video conferencing. The physical interviewers were recorded using a smartphone (Oppo R11). All interviews lasted between 20 and 50 min and were carried out in Khmer, the native language of both the researcher and research participants. The participant recruitment process was mainly conducted via Facebook Messenger and Telegram, common methods of communication among many people in Cambodia. It should be noted that the participants were well-informed about the purpose of the study and were explained about how the data, including their personal information such as gender and age, would be used in the study. Written consent forms were used, and efforts were taken to conform to the general ethical standards in social science research as discussed by Israel and Hay (2006).
Data Analysis
The recorded interviews were transcribed and directly translated into English by the researcher who is bilingual in Khmer and English. The transcripts were then transferred to NVivo 12 for data coding and analysis. The data analysis involved both deductive and inductive coding, and Braun and Clarke’s (2006) thematic analysis was used for this purpose. The process consisted of six steps, including (1) familiarizing oneself with the data, (2) generating initial codes, (3) searching for themes, (4) reviewing themes, (5) defining and naming themes, and (6) producing the report. Based on the analysis, three key themes in reference to the research questions were identified: (1) Cambodian university students and the concept of a knowledge-based society; (2) Cambodian universities and a knowledge-based society; and (3) Cambodian university students and their preparation for a knowledge-based society.
Findings
Cambodian University Students and the Concept of a Knowledge-Based Society
The data analysis showed that Cambodian provincial university students who participated in this study had positive perceptions about the concept of a knowledge-based society. They expressed positivity toward Cambodia’s vision to transform itself into a knowledge-based society. They particularly applauded the vision to develop into a knowledge-based society. As the following quotes illustrate, the participants appeared to share similarly positive views about Cambodia’s aspirations to become a knowledge society.
I think it’s a great vision. The world is becoming more globalized. We need to develop ourselves to become a knowledge society, not rely only on natural resources that will be done one day. (S1, Bachelor’s degree student, Agriculture) It is important that our country thinks about becoming a knowledge-based society. With this vision, we know where we are going, and we should try to achieve this ambitious goal. I think it’s great. (S11, Master’s degree student, English) For me, I think it is a great vision that should be commended. We used to be a great nation in the past. We need to strive for knowledge as knowledge will help us to compete with other countries in the world. (S20, Master’s degree student, Agriculture)
When asked whether they had ever heard the term “knowledge-based society,” some of them said “Yes,” while several, surprisingly, revealed that they had never heard of the term. For example, a few participants said that they had never heard of the term knowledge-based society whether in Khmer or English. One of them said: I’ve never heard of this term. I just heard about it when you invited me for the interview. (S8, Bachelor’s degree student, Information Technology)
Another participant similarly said that she had never heard of the term: I just heard about this term today. I’ve never heard about it before. (S2, Bachelor’s degree student, Finance and Banking)
Other student participants shared that they had heard of the term knowledge-based society before, particularly through joining workshops and/or social or educational events. The following conversation excerpts illustrate this point: Conversation excerpt 1
Have you ever heard the term “knowledge-based society”? How and when did you hear about it?
I have heard about it before. I heard about it when I joined a workshop organized by one NGO. One speaker talked about this term. (S5, Bachelor’s degree student, English)
Conversation excerpt 2
Have you ever heard about the term “knowledge-based society” before?
Yes, I heard about it a few years ago when I participated in a seminar. It was about digital education. (S11, Master’s degree student, English)
The data also showed that the participants seemed to have a superficial understanding of the concept of a knowledge-based society; that is, they only knew that term is associated with the word “knowledge,” as the name of the term suggests, but were hardly able to provide an extended definition of the term. For example, one of the participants said the following when asked to define the term knowledge-based society: I am not sure, but I think it means a society that depends on knowledge. As the term suggests, knowledge must be important in such a society. (S4, Bachelor’s degree student, English)
Another student (S16) frankly revealed that he believed the concept of a knowledge-based society is “a society that is based on knowledge,” referring to the name of the term. He added: I think in a knowledge-based society, the focus is on knowledge and educated people. We use knowledge to create new things and the development in society depends on the knowledge we have. (S16, Bachelor’s degree student, Agriculture)
Overall, the participants appeared to have a limited understanding of the term knowledge-based society, believed that knowledge played a pivotal role in a knowledge society, and felt positive toward Cambodia’s aspirations to become a knowledge-based society.
Cambodian Universities and a Knowledge-Based Society
The participants were also asked to provide their perspectives on the role of universities in a knowledge-based society. They mentioned a few keywords that resonated across the interviews. Some of these keywords included knowledge, education, research, educated people, universities, and human resources. They emphasized that in a knowledge-based society, the citizen should be highly educated and have the necessary knowledge and skills to contribute to economic development. Without an educated workforce, it would be hard, if not impossible, to develop into a knowledge-based society. The participants’ perspectives are reflected in the following quotes: Universities play a vital role in preparing students for a knowledge-based society. They provide students with the necessary skills and knowledge to thrive in such a society. (S12, Master’s degree student, English) In a knowledge-based society, education is important. Without a good education system that makes people knowledgeable, it will be hard to develop a society into a knowledge-based society. So, we need a good education system and more educated people to become a knowledge-based society. (S14, Master’s degree student, English)
When asked about the role of Cambodian universities in supporting Cambodia’s aspirations to become a knowledge society, the answers were mixed and, at times, contrasting. In other words, while some participants felt positive about the development of higher education and universities in Cambodia, others expressed doubts about the contributions of Cambodian universities to the development of a knowledge-based society in Cambodia. One participant expressed his positivity toward the recent developments in Cambodian higher education as follows: I think our higher education is now much better. The Ministry of Education has done a lot to improve the sector. I have seen a lot of activities and projects that are implemented to promote the quality of higher education. (S19, Master’s degree student, Agriculture)
Other students also acknowledged the recent progress in teaching and research in Cambodian higher education: There is a lot of progress in higher education in Cambodia. Although there are still challenges, I think we are much better if compared to the past. Some universities are good. They can teach students to become knowledgeable and compete with students in other countries. (S7, Master’s degree student, Agriculture) In terms of research, I think there is some good progress. I have read your articles. There are new journals and some projects that the Ministry of Education implements to promote research and innovation. (S13, Master’s degree student, English)
Despite their positive perceptions, the participants also mentioned issues and challenges that continued to constrain the development of higher education in Cambodia. Their views of the challenges were similar, highlighting key issues in Cambodia’s higher education. For example, a few of them raised the issue of skills mismatches among university graduates, while other participants emphasized the lack of focus on quality education and research. One participant said the following: One of the main problems is the skills mismatches. Many students work in jobs that are not really aligned with their majors. They just get the job to earn an income to support themselves and their family. (S12, Master’s degree student, English)
Other interviewees touched on the issues of unequal access to higher education; limited teaching and learning facilities; and limited opportunities for practical experience. As one participant, for example, said: I think we face a lot of issues, such as lack of facilities to support our study. There are also limited learning opportunities or workshops compared to the city. Luckily, due to COVID-19, I can attend a lot of workshops or seminars online. (S21, Master’s degree student, Business Administration)
Overall, the students’ perceptions of the role of Cambodian universities in supporting Cambodia’s aspirations to become a knowledge-based society were ambivalent. They expressed both optimism and pessimism, revealing the developmental stage of higher education in Cambodia in which progress and challenges are inextricably intertwined with each other in the current context.
Cambodian University Students and Their Preparation for a Knowledge-Based Society
The student participants were asked to talk about the main challenges facing them in preparing themselves for striving in a knowledge-based society. In other words, they were invited to talk about their challenges as provincial university students. Key challenges mentioned were similar across the interviews; however, there were also unique challenges faced by individual students. The common challenges included limited access to learning resources and support; limited ability to identify opportunities available to them; insufficient opportunities for training and professional development; limited exposure to technology; limited opportunities to improve their English proficiency; and lack of practical experience. The unique challenges faced by individual students included financial barriers; family responsibilities; sociocultural barriers (including gender expectations or norms); and issues related to the distance between home and university. Key challenges are summarized in Table 2.
Key Challenges Facing Cambodian Provincial University Students.
The students were also asked to provide suggestions for relevant stakeholders (e.g., the government, the private sector, HEIs, educational institutions, NGOs, and so on) to support them and other Cambodian students in their preparation for a knowledge-based society. Their suggestions focused on various aspects ranging from improving the quality of education to providing them with plenty of opportunities to gain practical experience and to improving their knowledge and skills for the job market.
One of the common suggestions from the student participants, for example, was about promoting education quality. As one participant said, “It is very important that we try to promote the quality of education. With good education, our citizens will be educated people who can contribute to developing our country.” (S6, Master’s degree student, Business Administration). This comment highlights a serious problem when it comes to the quality of education in Cambodia, as reflected in the comments of other participants: To help university students, the government and concerned stakeholders need to find ways to improve the education quality. There are a lot of students who graduate and work in jobs not relevant to their majors. I think this is a big issue. (S12, Master’s degree student, English) A knowledge-based society is a society that focuses on knowledge. So, I think it’s important to ensure people can get knowledge, skills, and ability to use knowledge to develop the country. To achieve this, we need to improve our education system. (S20, Master’s degree student, Agriculture)
Another suggestion was to offer opportunities for students to have practical experience. Many students in provincial universities seemed to lack the opportunities to be involved in various opportunities that could improve their knowledge and skills, including soft skills. As highlighted in a comment by one student (S9, Bachelor’s degree student, Information Technology), students in provincial universities did not have sufficient opportunities to enhance their practical knowledge and skills because most of the extracurricular activities or other learning opportunities tended to be offered in the city. He said: I think all stakeholders should try to provide sufficient opportunities for students, particularly those in the provinces, to gain practical experience and develop knowledge and skills that are not provided in universities. There are not many opportunities for students in the provinces, so there must be more support for them. (S9, Bachelor’s degree student, Information Technology)
The participants also made suggestions on the need to help students develop their knowledge and skills required for the job market. They tended to highlight the issue of skill mismatches and the problem of not learning sufficient knowledge that could ensure appropriate employment after graduation. For example, one participant commented: Universities need to ensure that students are equipped with the necessary knowledge that they can use after graduation. They need to have knowledge about their major and also knowledge about other things such as English, IT (informational technology), and soft skills. (S14, Master’s degree student, English)
Overall, the students’ suggestions on how concerned stakeholders should do to support Cambodian provincial university students and other Cambodian students in general in preparing for a knowledge-based society tended to center on the need to improve the quality of education and the importance of providing them with the necessary knowledge and skills for striving in the job market. These findings have important implications for policymakers, educational institutions, and other key stakeholders in Cambodian higher education.
Discussion
This study showed that Cambodian provincial university students had a limited understanding of the concept of a knowledge-based society. Their superficial understanding of the term revealed their limited exposure to learning opportunities outside the university setting as well as their limited opportunities to engage in various educational opportunities such as workshops, forums, and/or events, among others. The findings also indicated that participation in extracurricular activities such as workshops, seminars, and other educational activities provided students with important opportunities to develop their knowledge and skills as well as gain practical experience, generally not available in university settings. This has implications for universities to provide students with the opportunities to develop their knowledge beyond what is available in universities. As Aliu and Aigbavboa (2023) found in their review of the roles of extracurricular activities, participation in out-of-school activities was vital to developing students’ employability skills.
The present study, moreover, revealed that Cambodian provincial university students had ambivalent attitudes toward Cambodia’s vision to become a knowledge-based society. Although they felt positive about this admirable vision, some of them did not see how such a vision could be realized in the foreseeable future. This shows their awareness of the current state of development of Cambodian higher education and the need to improve the sector to ensure that the country could successfully transform itself into a knowledge-based society. These findings are in line with a recent qualitative study by Heng (2023) who also investigated Cambodian university students’ perspectives on Cambodia’s aspirations to become a knowledge society. Although Heng’s study focused on students in the city, the findings were similar to those of the present study, as it was found that Cambodian university students based in the city rated the contributions of Cambodian universities to building a knowledge society to be moderate, with a few believing that the contributions were below 50%. These findings should be further investigated to provide a better understanding why students believed in this way.
In addition, the present study showed that Cambodian provincial university students faced a variety of challenges ranging from limited access to learning resources to limited opportunities for gaining practical experience and limited exposure to technology and extracurricular or training opportunities. There were also other challenges that may be unique to provincial university students, placing them at the disadvantaged end when it came to taking full advantage of educational opportunities. These findings confirmed those of Chea (2019) who found that “young adults from disadvantaged groups are less likely to reap the benefits from the higher education expansion” (p. 4) in Cambodia. This study’s findings also corroborate those of Heng (2022b) who investigated Cambodian youth’s engagement in the knowledge sector and found various challenges affecting their research engagement, including a lack of conducive environment for research. Likewise, these findings confirm observations made by Soth (2022) who indicated that Cambodian students in provincial or rural areas faced many challenges, including a lack of access to information, lack of learning resources, and limited opportunities to develop practical knowledge and soft skills.
Overall, the findings of this study provided an understanding of how Cambodian provincial university students perceived Cambodia’s vision to become a knowledge-based society. While the students’ knowledge of the term “knowledge-based society” was limited, they expressed optimism regarding their country’s vision for becoming a knowledge society. However, they also expressed their concerns over the various challenges affecting Cambodian higher education, showing their understanding of the current developments of the sector. The challenges that the students faced and the suggestions they made provide a basis for further investigation and close academic and/or policy attention, particularly in light of the significant role of young people and higher education in a knowledge society (Heng, 2023).
Conclusion and Implications
This study has examined Cambodian university students’ perspectives on Cambodia’s aspirations to become a knowledge-based society. Drawing on interview data with university students, the study has shown that Cambodian university students who participated in this research had a superficial understanding of the term knowledge-based society, with some having never heard of the term before; however, they had positive perceptions about their country’s vision to develop into a knowledge society. This study has also found a mixed view regarding the contributions of Cambodian universities to realizing Cambodia’s knowledge society vision; that is, while some students felt positive about the recent developments in Cambodian higher education, others expressed concerns about the various issues (e.g., skills mismatches, limited education quality, limited research activities) affecting the higher education sector in Cambodia. In addition, the study has revealed the challenges facing university students in provincial Cambodia in preparing themselves to participate in a knowledge society. Key challenges that were identified included a lack of access to learning resources and opportunities, limited exposure to technology and opportunities to improve their English as well as other hard and soft skills, and limited opportunities to gain practical experience. There were also other challenges caused by financial barriers, family responsibilities, and sociocultural barriers.
This study points to an important issue in Cambodian higher education, that is, the gap in the provision of education quality and opportunities for students in the city and those in the provinces. Although this study does not aim to compare the quality and/or opportunities available to students studying in the city and provincial towns, the findings have shown that those who are based in the provinces tend to have fewer opportunities when it comes to learning, personal and professional development, development of soft skills or technological skills, and other extracurricular learning opportunities.
These findings have important implications for policy and practice. For policy, it is essential that policymakers and key higher education stakeholders such as international organizations pay greater attention to bridging the gap in the provision of education quality and opportunities for students in the city and the provinces or rural areas. It is crucial to provide additional support, whether financial or technical, to the students based in disadvantaged or less advantaged areas so that they can be sufficiently supported and empowered to develop their knowledge, skills, and capacity needed to participate meaningfully in their community and society. For practice, it is imperative that Cambodian universities in particular and HEIs in general as well as other concerned stakeholders across different levels begin to seriously tackle the remaining issues and challenges facing Cambodian higher education. As Cambodia is envisioning to become a knowledge society where knowledge is a key driver of socioeconomic growth and sustainable development, it is necessary to ensure that university students, particularly those in provincial or rural areas, be given ample opportunities to develop themselves to become quality human capital that can drive Cambodia toward achieving its knowledge society vision and other development visions such as the vision for becoming an upper-middle-income country and high-income country by 2030 and 2050, respectively.
As this study has shown, university students still have doubts regarding the contributions of Cambodian universities to realizing the country’s vision; therefore, it is time for key higher education stakeholders, especially the government, to direct their attention to ensuring the quality of higher education and the provision of education and learning opportunities for all university students, particularly those in rural or disadvantaged areas. It is only when university students are adequately supported and given opportunities to develop themselves personally and professionally, can they become an engine for socioeconomic development, helping their country to realize its development visions.
This study, albeit being one of the first studies of its kind, is not without limitations. First, doctoral students were not included in the data collection although it was initially planned that all the three levels of university students would be recruited for in-depth interviews. Second, only three universities in the provinces are included in the study, leaving the perspectives of Cambodian students in other provincial universities and/or university in the capital city not represented in this study. Third, this study was designed as a qualitative inquiry and only employed semi-structured interviews for data collection, making the findings limited to this research design and data collection method; therefore, the findings should be interpreted with caution. Considering these limitations, it is suggested that future researchers should address the shortcomings of the present study and conduct research to further explore this phenomenon quantitatively, qualitatively, or both, using a mixed-methods design and involving a large sample size. More research is indeed needed to bring the perspectives of university students and other stakeholders, such as university leaders and lecturers, in a developing country to the wider academic community, so there will be more insights and deeper understandings of the conditions and realities of higher education in such an academically underrepresented context. Finally, research that examines Cambodia’s vision for its higher education in 2030 and 2050 should be conducted.
Footnotes
Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank Ms Lina Khoun, Australia Awards Cambodia’s Alumni Partnerships and Grants Coordinator, and the Cambodian university students who participated in this study. The author is also grateful to the anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments on an earlier version of this article.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This research was supported by Australia Awards Cambodia. The funding source, however, had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, writing of the report, or decision to submit for publication.
Ethics Statement
This study used written consent forms and followed the general ethical standards in social science research.
Data Availability Statement
The data sets analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.