The Office of the Higher Education Commission (Ohec) is proposing measures to prevent student loans from going to substandard programmes.
The move aims to protect students from unethical institutions that offer uncertified or poor-quality programmes.
"We will inform the Office of Student Loans [OSL] of our proposed measures soon," Ohec secretary-general Dr Sumeth Yamnoon said yesterday.
He said an Ohec subcommittee had drawn up the measures after receiving complaints from many students.
The subcommittee has proposed that the OSL should not transfer money to pay for courses that have not been certified by Ohec or, if related to some professions such as medicine, are not certified by professional bodies.
Also, the subcommittee has proposed that only off-campus programmes certified by Ohec are eligible to receive money from the OSL.
In this academic year, more than a million students have sought financial help from the OSL. After their applications are approved, the money goes directly to the universities of the students' choice.
One key problem is that many students have unwittingly ended up in uncertified programmes. After spending a lot of money and time, they cannot get the degree they want. For example, some colleges have offered nursing programmes despite the fact they have never won approval from the Thailand Nursing Council.
Ohec, therefore, has decided to step in to protect students.
"Our proposed measures will ensure that students have received educational services from quality programmes," Sumeth said.
OSL deputy manager Sermkiat Tassanasuwan said the number of loan applicants was higher than expected. While the OSL estimated that just 890,000 students would seek loans from it, more than a million students had submitted applications in this academic year.
He added that this year, the Islamic Bank of Thailand had joined the OSL programme and more than 6,000 Muslim students had come forward for loans.
"Through the participation of the Islamic Bank, Muslim students will have a channel to get loans without breaking their religious rules," Sermkiat said.