Training talent – ​​the mission and distinctive features of Vietnam National University, Hanoi.

Students of Hanoi National University

Prioritize talent discovery.

The philosophy behind talent training at Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU) is to cultivate excellence. Training at VNU aims not only to equip students with comprehensive knowledge, creative abilities, and ethical qualities, but also to focus on foreign language training, organizational skills and capabilities, and especially on developing critical thinking and vision, giving students the confidence and determination to enter the workforce and build their own careers.

Talent is the lifeblood of a nation. We are living in an era where economic integration and competition are rapidly and fiercely taking place on a global scale.

The experience of the Industrial Revolution 3.0 shows that the key to the remarkable growth of Asian countries in recent decades, such as Japan, South Korea, China, and India, lies in their success in identifying, training, and utilizing talent.

Without the intellectual resources to create breakthroughs, we will find it difficult to seize the opportunities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Ultimately, science and technology (S&T) and education and training are the magic wands that will enable Vietnam to take off and rise in today's era.

Therefore, identifying, training, nurturing, valuing, and creating conditions for talented individuals to develop their abilities and make practical contributions to the cause of national construction and defense is an urgent and indispensable requirement, of vital importance to the success of the country's industrialization and modernization. Universities, including Vietnam National University, Hanoi, have been and are making significant contributions to the identification, training, and nurturing of talent for the country.

The philosophy behind talent training at Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU) is to cultivate excellence. Training at VNU aims not only to equip students with comprehensive knowledge, creative abilities, and ethical qualities, but also to focus on foreign language training, organizational skills and capabilities, and especially on developing critical thinking and vision, giving students the confidence and determination to enter the workforce and build their own careers.

To fulfill this mission, Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU) always prioritizes discovering talent from the high school level and subsequently throughout the university years. VNU has continuously developed and perfected high-quality training models, from gifted high school students to university programs with high-quality programs, talented students, and international standards – also known as a strategic mission (international standards at VNU are present at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels).

Recalling the early days of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, President Ho Chi Minh affirmed, "The nation needs to be rebuilt. Reconstruction requires talented people," and he signed a decree seeking talented and virtuous individuals to use in the cause of national reconstruction.

Talent is innate, but talented and virtuous individuals are not born naturally; they must be discovered, trained, nurtured, challenged, and honed. Therefore, the discovery, training, and utilization of talent has always been a special concern of our Party and State.

The initial idea of ​​opening a specialized A0 mathematics class in Vietnam came from Professor Hoang Tuy, former Head of the Mathematics Department at Hanoi University, who consulted the methods of great Soviet mathematicians such as An. Kolmogorov, P.S. Alexandrov, and I.M. Gelfand. Professor Hoang Tuy's proposal received strong support from Professor Le Van Thiem, Vice Rector; Professor Nguy Nhu Kon Tum, Rector; Professor Ta Quang Buu, Minister of Higher Education and Vocational Training; and especially Prime Minister Pham Van Dong, who always cared about education, particularly the training of gifted students.

On September 14, 1965, Deputy Prime Minister Pham Hung, on behalf of the Prime Minister, signed Decision No. 14-CP, authorizing the first specialized mathematics class at Hanoi University and several provinces and cities. From then on, specialized classes in Mathematics, Physics, Informatics, Chemistry, and Biology at Hanoi University gradually formed and developed.

Transforming from a bright student with innate talents into a brilliant scientist, into a true prodigy.

Transforming high-achieving students into excellent scientists.

With a rigorous and strict entrance selection process and a well-structured training program, students at the Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU) are actively trained in critical thinking, methodology, and skills, and their knowledge is enhanced. What sets them apart is that they learn from leading professors, scientists, and the best, most dedicated, and experienced teachers.

As a result, from 1974 to the present, students from specialized programs at Vietnam National University, Hanoi have won 81 gold medals, 110 silver medals, and 91 bronze medals in international and regional Olympic competitions – the highest number of international medals in the country.

The success and achievements of former students of specialized schools, and the training accomplishments of specialized programs, now the specialized high schools of Vietnam National University, Hanoi, in national and international examinations over the past 60 years, are the most convincing evidence of the success of the gifted high school model. This affirms the correct, creative, and unique decision of the national talent training policy being proposed and implemented by the Party and State, and which is being carried out extremely successfully and effectively at Vietnam National University, Hanoi.

For nearly 60 years, the Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU) has been training students in specialized high schools, and later, since 1997, has been training talented science graduates, then high-quality students, and subsequently international standard programs.

Studying and conducting research in a modern, advanced environment is of particular importance in training and nurturing talent. The reputation of major universities around the world is often linked to the scale of their scientific work and the names of their leading scientists.

Scientists who want to develop scientific ideas, build their own academic school, or solve an interdisciplinary scientific problem must establish a team of collaborators and students (i.e., build a strong research group). And talented students and graduate researchers are the crucial human resources for strong research groups in universities.

The learning and training process within strong research groups at prestigious, modern universities, where there are many excellent professors, will train and transform a bright student with innate potential into a brilliant scientist, into a talented individual.

Hanoi National University continues to develop its position in international rankings.

World University Rankings

Aware of this problem, just a few years after the establishment of Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU), in 1997, facing the risk of a shortage of basic science staff in both quantity and quality, the VNU leadership at that time conceived the idea of ​​a model for training talented Bachelor of Science students with the goal and learning approach based on the experiences of excellent programs.Honor ProgramAt universities in the United States, as well as in some advanced countries around the world, the initial goals were:

(1) to build a new talent training model in Vietnam, creating a breakthrough in approaching international quality; (2) to attract gifted and excellent students to study basic science disciplines; (3) to provide successor basic science personnel to supplement the country.

Therefore, the school has selected core subjects and those with suitable teaching conditions to enhance the content compared to the regular curriculum. A large team of highly qualified and dedicated scientists and educators from within and outside the school, including international experts, have been mobilized to participate in compiling the curriculum, lectures, and directly teaching. This is a special training program that provides fundamental knowledge on par with world-renowned universities.

This special training program is aimed at exceptionally talented and gifted students, therefore it cannot be extended to the general student population. Selected students include those who have won top prizes in national competitions, participated in international Olympic teams, and are also chosen from high-scoring students in entrance exams and outstanding students from various provinces. These students must undergo a special professional assessment and a direct interview.

By the end of 2022, the talented science undergraduate program had awarded 1,378 degrees. The talented science undergraduate program at Vietnam National University, Hanoi, meets all the most important requirements: educational quality recognized by society, adherence to international standards; and the students' thinking, creativity, and vision are affirmed by employers both domestically and internationally.

Leaders of organizations, businesses, and major universities both domestically and internationally highly appreciate the quality of graduates from this training program, recognizing their competence in teaching, research, and working in various fields and positions.

The high-quality, talent-based training model of Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU) has since been replicated in several other universities in Vietnam. These training programs have significantly contributed to placing six of VNU's fields in the top 400-500 of the 2022 QS rankings, as well as enhancing VNU's scientific and technological potential and placing it among the top 800 universities in the world.

Over the past 30 years of construction and development since the Government issued the Decree on National Universities in 1993, it can be affirmed that discovering, training, and nurturing talent is the mission and distinctive feature of Hanoi National University.