In 1997, the Hanoi University of Natural Sciences, a member school of the Hanoi National University, kicked off the talented bachelor production program.

Recalling the first days of the program, Mai Trong Nhuan, former director of the Hanoi National University, said he was very happy because the school was given the right to run the program.

The school had the right to determine the full-scholarship levels for students and training curricula. The scholarship the students of the program received was equal to the salary paid to a professor – VND500,000, which comprised tuition and expenses for daily life. Therefore, the quality of students was very high.

Vietnam needs to have a law on appreciating and using talented peoole, according to Le Thanh Van, a National Assembly Deputy.

However, after three years, it ended. Nhuan said Vietnamese people are not willing to pay a lot for talent training.

Nhuan, who was a manager of one of the leading schools in Vietnam, and is now a university accreditor, said he understands the problems of tertiary education establishments.

Some years ago, the University of Natural Sciences built up a set of criteria for choosing, managing and using talents. However, it has become a ‘confidential document’.

A university lecturer in Hanoi, citing a report which says that most of the winners of ‘Road to Olympia’ TV show leave Vietnam for tertiary education overseas and don’t return to Vietnam after graduation, commented that this shows the big problems of Vietnam’s education. It is low-quality education which makes Vietnam unable to find and use talents.

A lot of programs on appreciating and using talents have been launched by cities and provinces, but many of them have failed. Local authorities have spent big money to send talented students and civil servants to overseas training courses.

However, many of them didn’t come back to Vietnam to serve at state’s agencies as they promised.

Others returned to Vietnam, but just to take simple jobs which have no relation with the majors they were trained for. Some of them had to take extra jobs as taxi motorbike drivers because they could not live with the modest salary they received from the job at the office.

Le Thanh Van, since becoming a National Assembly Deputy, has repeatedly asked to create a law on appreciating and using talents.

He said Singapore, Japan and South Korea have developed economies, though they are not rich in natural resources, because they have policies on appreciating and using talented people. 

Le Ha

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