Hue University’s leaders signing memorandum of understanding (MOU) with an international partner
Numerous achievements
In only the first half of 2019, Hue University has welcomed 184 international delegations from Belgium, the U.S, France, Japan, etc., and signed 11 MOUs concerning student and staff exchange, human resource development, cooperation in training, scientific research and technology transfer, etc., with many universities, research institutes and organizations from around the globe.
According to Dr. Do Thi Xuan Dung, Vice Director of Hue University, international cooperation is one of the key pillars and among the eight strategic goals and solutions of Hue University until 2020, with a vision to 2030. Therefore, the institution’s strategy towards the sector is always adaptive. Speaking of international cooperation for the promotion of science and technology activities alone, from 2009 to 2019, Hue University has developed its partnership with more than 200 educational institutions and international organizations from over 30 countries through the signing of 350 MOUs, harvesting numerous fruits.
In the academic year 2018-2019, Hue University, as well as its members and affiliated educational institutions, has actively expanded their partnership network for joint training, science and technology exchange, and capacity building projects in the field of higher education not only with its traditional allies but also with new and potential counterparts or strategic and diplomatic partners. This year, Hue University has also assisted Laos with the development of its human resources through its graduate program in environmental science and the upcoming programs in information technology and tourism.
Via international cooperation, Hue University has managed to mobilize a good deal of vital resources to advance its higher education capacity through funding mechanisms and international cooperation projects, etc., in the fields of higher education institution, training, capacity building of scientific research, community healthcare, livelihood development, infrastructure innovation, etc. Improvements in staff’s professional quality and students’ skills have also been enhanced.
Emphasizing on student mobility
Along with maintaining and promoting traditional activities in international cooperation, in the coming time, Hue University stresses on developing programs for Student Mobility - a new type of activity which has received a great deal of interest from educational institutions and international organizations at global forums.
Dr. Do Thi Xuan Dung shared: “Internationalization is taking place with great dynamics. In this trend, students are also beneficiaries. Student mobility not only improves students’ knowledge and skills but also allows them, by living and studying in another country, to experience and practice many essential skills, as well as not only to become a cultural ambassador in tertiary education but also contribute to tackling issues at both national and international levels”.
Through student mobility, Hue University’s education institutions have an opportunity to introduce themselves to international friends and improve their position in university rankings, since student mobility is one of the criteria in the checklist of many international university ranking organizations.
“At Tomas Bata University, I studied filmmaking, design and communication. The knowledge I gained from there is very useful for my major in multimedia art design. In my host country, I also had opportunities to introduce Vietnamese calligraphy to international friends.” shared Do Huu Hoang Dat, an alumnus of Hue University of Fine Arts and awardee of the SHARE scholarship to study in Czech.
According to a Hue University’s representative, Hue University has all the conditions to perform well with regards to student mobility, especially in attracting international students. The university provides multi-disciplinary education programs, and many of them are taught in English. Also, the availability of local resources will enable the institution to deliver adequate services to international students as well as to take advantage of funding programs from embassies and governments or European international cooperation projects.
In 2019, the International Department of Hue University was established. It is responsible for carrying out the undergraduate bridging programs in information security (in partnership with Turku University, Finland), international business administration (in partnership with University of Thai Chamber of Commerce, Thailand), and the Master’s program in food technology. These initiatives not only allow domestic students to access high quality international training programs right in Vietnam but also, as a long-term goal that the International Department and other education units of Hue University are striving to achieve: attracting international students to enroll to study at Hue University.
“Hue University is going to establish and implement sufficient measures to develop student mobility programs in terms of scale, quantity, and quality, with a view to enhance Hue University’s international standing, at the same time fostering international exchange to improve cultural understanding, friendship, and global citizenship education. We will launch more and better English-taught training programs and fortify actionable linkages to increase the number of Hue University students going abroad and the number of international students coming to Hue University to study and experience,” said a representative of Hue University’s leaders.
Story and photo: Huu Phuc