Week 7 - Charles Miin

Vietnam as a country has enormous potential as it continues to be one of the rising nations in the modern age. Those states who have had so little for so long are that much more interested in lifting their people out of squalor and poverty. Therefore, it makes sense that the government of Vietnam is taking major steps to allow the renowned and respected units of higher education from the West transcend national borders and help teach its people. Three types of transnational higher education are listed with people, program, and institution mobility based education. The respective levels correspond to varying levels of involvement, with people being about academics and students traveling, then programs being shared via e-learning, partnerships, joint efforts, and institution where the campus is physically extended abroad. While it is obvious what strengths these forms of higher education can have, there are obvious drawbacks. Local Vietnamese academics may not have the ability to remain relevant, often by language. Students are similar in that they need to be proficient in order to participate in these programs and institutions, leading to a specific graduation requirement and a culture of paying for the luxury of learning top quality English. The issue then arises of how to best regulate such an unknown and volatile foreign market of sorts. There is no clear inclination of whether restrictive or more liberal regulation will promote the most growth while keeping the students at the forefront of concerns. Especially when you consider that many of these organizations are not operating strictly as a non-profit entity, it becomes no surprise that the education sector is reporting disproportionately high reports of non-conformity to regulation. Even so, this was only made possible by failures on part of Vietnamese regulatory efforts to be effectively clear and understandable, leading to situations where companies will fulfill initial requirements of infrastructure and facilities but then downgrade to save costs during their contract. Of all parties, the Vietnamese student is clearly the one with the most at risk with attempting to invest in education, but ultimately losing all credibility due to the unsavory practices of the chosen institution of higher education. Therefore it should be a top priority of Vietnamese governance. Will Vietnam be able to strike the balance needed to have effective transnational higher education and how does it plan to do so?

Nguyen, George, and Anna Shillabeer. Issues in Transnational Higher Education Regulation in Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh City: RMIT International Vietnam, 2013. Print.