Pedro Navarro- Week 9

During the last week, we discussed some of the challenges that Viet Nam is currently facing, which are stopping Viet Nam from growing at a faster pace. Currently, according to Gribble, there is many self-funded Vietnamese students studying overseas, most of which choose to remain in the host country upon graduation rather than returning home. Gribble explains that although there isn’t any available data on return rates of students, sources in Viet Nam indicate that very few students are returning after completion of their degrees. Because of this, Viet Nam is losing potential economically successful stories. In other words, these students are basically brain drainage. According to Gribble, the government had done very little to encourage students to return home, but it has considered adopting controls as of late. In a way, a culture of education is inexistent because these students are refusing to return. I think the only way to stop students from not returning is for them to not leave in the first place. But, this can only happen if Viet Nam’s higher education system increases to be up to par with the demand of a modern economy. Viet Nam can reach a maximum national aesthetic if it creates a competent higher education system, one that attracts people to stay. Is it possible for Viet Nam to compete with the U.S. higher educational system though? I hope so, because I believe the students are a huge factor for the development of a new Viet Nam.

Cate Gribble. “National Policies on Skilled Labour and the Cross­border Student Market, with a Focus on Vietnam.” Higher Education in the Asia-Pacific. Higher Education Dynamics.  36.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Vietnam