‘The idea that vocational training is inferior to university education is outdated.’

‘"University is not the only path; someone with a vocational diploma can still become an entrepreneur or a scientist. The mindset that vocational college or technical school education is inferior to university is now outdated.".

Deputy Minister Le Quan at the press conference of the National Forum on Upgrading Vietnamese Labor Skills.

Mr. Le Quan, Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, made this statement at the International Workshop on Development and Recognition of Vocational Skills for Youth in the New Era, organized by the General Department of Vocational Education on the morning of July 14th in Hanoi.

Deputy Minister Le Quan said he recently read in the newspaper that more than 250,000 students, instead of registering for university entrance exams, have "given up" and switched to registering for colleges and vocational training. Mr. Quan argued that using the word "given up" is no longer appropriate because vocational education currently plays a very important role in the economy.

“Universities train elite human resources capable of solving new problems and creating new technologies. Vocational education, on the other hand, creates a workforce to implement those technologies. University is not the only path. Colleges and vocational schools should not be considered as third or fourth choices, but rather as correct and important choices for candidates,” Mr. Le Quan shared.

Information from delegates from developed countries at the conference indicated that many countries have approaches to vocational education that are quite different from Vietnam's.

South Korea is one of the countries that considers vocational skills certificates mandatory. Upon entering high school, Korean students can choose specialized high schools, where they receive a Level 1 certificate (the lowest level out of five), allowing them to start working immediately. There are also vocational high schools for students with specialized skills. These schools offer tuition-free education and provide certificates equivalent to those of an industrial engineer.

Students from the BTEC International College program in Hotel Management participate in a skills competition.

Those who participate in local, national, and world skills competitions may be admitted directly to university as experienced individuals, and when applying for jobs at the central or local level, they are exempt from requiring certificates.

Meanwhile, Mr. Nguyen Chi Truong – Head of the Vocational Skills Department of the General Department of Vocational Education – stated that the current workforce aged 15 and above in Vietnam is 55.46 million people. Of these, the trained workforce with diplomas and certificates accounts for 22,371. Thus, the number of untrained workers with diplomas and certificates accounts for as much as 77,631…

During his visit to Viet My College on August 3, 2018, Professor Dr. Le Quan – Deputy Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs – shared many insights on vocational education with the Board of Directors of Viet My College.“Currently, the market is in great need of high-quality personnel in various professions. Therefore, the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs highly commends colleges and vocational schools with good, high-quality training programs that offer fast training and immediate employment opportunities upon graduation. For example, at Viet My College, the Commercial English Translation program has a tuition fee of 10 million VND per semester, a reasonable training duration, and provides high-quality education for students – making that fee very reasonable. This is also the program I work on.
Technology major, very suitable for students...."”

Author: Pham Phan - Date written: July 18, 2020

Category: Business English interpreting, News - Events