Historic Milestone: First MD–MEng Students in Thailand Successfully Defend Their Theses

August 22, 2025 – Mahidol University, Thailand

A historic milestone was achieved as the first two students of Thailand’s unique M.D.–M.Eng. Double Degree Program successfully defended their master’s theses at BART LAB, Mahidol University.

The two candidates, Mr. Pan-Pasit Komonsuwan and Mr. Big-Porames Vatanaprasan, are medical students from Ramathibodi Hospital pursuing a joint degree with the Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Mahidol University. Both presented groundbreaking research topics at the intersection of medicine and robotics:

1. Pan-Pasit Komonsuwan – “An Intra-Operative Trajectory Realignment Algorithm for Minimizing Pedicle Screw Misplacement in Cervical Spinal Fusion.”
2. Big-Porames Vatanaprasan – “Design Optimization of a Soft Robotic Manipulator for Intraventricular Neuroendoscopic Surgery.”

Both projects exemplify the mission of the MD–MEng program: integrating medical expertise and engineering innovation to create next-generation leaders in medical technology.

Defense Committee:

1. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Jackrit Suthakorn (Main Advisor)
2. Dr. Sorayouth Chumnanvej, MD (Co-Advisor for both, Ramathibodi Hospital)
3. Dr. Shen Treratanakulchai (Co-Advisor for Big-Porames)
4. Dr. Sakol “Bee” Nakdhamabhorn (External for Pan-Pasit, Chulabhorn Royal Academy)
5. Asst. Prof. Dr. Soong Vongbunyong (External for Big-Porames, FIBO–KMUTT)
6. Dr. Songpol Ongwattanakul (Chair for both defenses)

Special thanks to Dr. Nantida “Nui Nan” Nillahoot, Asst. Prof. Choladawan Moonjaita, Dr. Shen Treratanakulchai, Dr. Branesh Madhavan, Dr. Dileep Sivaraman, and all BART LAB members for their support and mentorship.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Jackrit Suthakorn proudly announced that Pan-Pasit and Big-Porames are his 29th and 30th master’s graduates, marking an extraordinary achievement for both the MD–MEng program and BART LAB.