Vietnamese Universities Visit NTNU to Increase Academic Cooperation and Exchange
National Taiwan Normal University celebrated its 101st anniversary on 5 June by inviting distinguished guests to its anniversary ceremony. Attendees included delegations from Hue University of Education (HUEdu); University of Sciences, Hue University (HUSC); and the University of Danang-University of Science and Education (UD-UED). The three Vietnamese universities’ mission for this visit to Taiwan was to advance academic exchange with two of the universities signing MOUs with National Taiwan Normal University to broaden student mobility and learning.
HUEdu, HUSC, and UD-UED are all located in central Vietnam. The three schools had hosted a delegation from NTNU in February and their recent visit to NTNU is in response to an invitation extended by the Office of International Affairs at that time. HUEdu and HUSC are both part of the Hue University System. Hue University of Education is recognized as one of the leading universities in Vietnam and scheduled to become a national benchmark university for education by 2030. University of Sciences, Hue University is a global supplier of highly qualified human resources, scientific research, and interdisciplinary cooperation for the development of Vietnam. The University of Danang-University of Science and Education is an interdisciplinary university with 8,656 undergraduate students and nearly 250 international students.
NTNU Vice President for International Affairs represented the University for the MOU signing with HUEdu and HUSC, thus establishing a formal exchange to recruit Vietnamese students to study at NTNU. Mr. Anh-Tuan Hoang, a Vietnamese staff member for NTNU’s Office of International Affairs, then explained in detail for the guests from all three schools regarding the application process for students. Dr. Chiou-Lan Chern, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Dr. Hsui-Lan Tien, Dean of the College of Education both attended the meeting and introduced the characteristics of their respective Colleges.
Dr. Tran Duc Manh, professor of chemistry at UD-UED, asked whether Vietnamese students coming to NTNU would be affected by a language barrier, which would prevent them from completing their studies. Dr. Chern mentioned that the Mandarin Training Center has abundant resources for foreign students to learn without being overcome by any language barrier. NTNU also offers English Mediated Instruction (EMI) programs and the Center for Academic Literacy routinely holds a variety of activities which can concurrently help students improve their English proficiency.
Following the formal signings and introductions, the three Vietnamese universities conducted exchange sessions with faculty members from the College of Liberal Arts, the College of Education, and the College of Science at NTNU, with the two universities of the Hue University System establishing College-level MOU agreements. The visit concluded with a shared vision of easier access for Vietnamese students to study at NTNU as well as forming closer academic cooperation through joint training programs, international conferences, and research projects.