Ninety-five people have been removed from the list of newly-appointed professors and associate professors that was announced in early February.

The people were found to lack required qualifications to be certified professors and associate professors.

The updated list of professors and associate professors, announced by the State Council for Professor Titles of Việt Nam on Monday, now has 1,131 people, encompassing 74 professors and 1,057 associate professors.

The move came after the council conducted a full-scale review the list of professors and associate professors following Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc’s order on February 9.

Previously, the council published the list in early February. Under the list, 1,226 people were appointed as professors and associate professors in 2017, including 85 professors and 1,141 associate professors.

However, mass media reported that the number was believed to be the highest number within four decades since the State started to grant the title of professors and associate professors to many appointees without requiring them to publish scientific papers in international journals and complete lecturing hours.

Deputy Minister of Education and Training cum Vice chairman of the council Bùi Văn Ga said after receiving the Prime Minister’s order, the ministry immediately reviewed all 1,226 records of the professors and associate professors.

“We found 1,131 qualified records while the remaining records were still under re-verified,” he said.

Explaining the high number of professors and associate professors appointed in 2017, Ga said one of the reasons was that many lecturers who were sent abroad for training courses a few years ago returned to the country in 2016. Thus, the number of candidates meeting the required standards for professors and associate professors was higher than in previous years.

Ga also added that the number of scientific papers published in international journals in 2017 by the candidates was 5,316, doubled from the total number in 2016. —VNS