The new training regulations lay the foundation for innovation and improvement in training quality.

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Dinh Duc - Head of Training Department, Vietnam National University, Hanoi

Foreign language is only a prerequisite subject.

- Professor, what legal documents and specific criteria of the Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU) were the newly issued regulations on undergraduate and postgraduate training (the Regulations) compiled on?

The basis for developing these regulations on undergraduate and postgraduate training is: Government Decree 186/2013/ND-CP on National Universities; Regulation 26/2014/QD-TTg on the organization and operation of National Universities; and Circular 15/2014/TT-BGDĐT of the Ministry of Education and Training promulgating regulations on master's degree training.

The new regulations aim to adjust training and training management activities to better suit the practical development of Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU), by strengthening VNU's delegation of authority to units in training activities; enhancing the responsibility of lecturers and students; emphasizing the responsibility of inspection and supervision by training management departments; and most importantly, creating a legal foundation to further affirm VNU's pioneering position in developing new training majors and specializations, new training models, in the direction of improving quality, integration, and achieving international standards.

Professor, could you please tell us about the notable new features in these university training regulations?

There are several notable new features as follows:

The firstThis represents a change in some concepts. For example, previously, under the old regulations, undergraduate courses were called "subjects," while postgraduate courses were called "modules." Now, undergraduate and postgraduate courses are uniformly referred to as "modules."courseSoft skills courses are calledSupplementary skills…These terms are more accurate and scientific, and are more in line with the credit-based training method.

MondayThe new regulations stipulate that foreign languages ​​are now only a prerequisite subject. Under the old regulations, the foreign language grade was included in the cumulative GPA for the entire semester and the entire course of study. However, under the new regulations, foreign languages ​​will only be a prerequisite subject, only counted as a pass or fail, and the number of foreign language credits will not be included in the total number of credits required to calculate the overall GPA.

The training in specialized foreign languages ​​(if included in the training program) and subjects belonging to the supplementary skills group is now assigned to training units to research, select content, and organize training suitable to the needs, characteristics, and realities of their respective units.

TuesdayThese are changes to the registration for grade improvement. The previous regulations allowed students to retake exams to improve their grades, using the most recent grade improvement exam score. This allowed students to retake courses and exams to achieve better academic results. The new regulations only allow students with grades of D or D+ (below average) to retake exams to improve their grades. Therefore, students should understand this change to be more serious and committed to their studies from their early years.

Wednesday,Students are only allowed to register for a maximum of 18 credits per semester. Previously, the old regulations did not stipulate this, so students registered for too many credits in a semester without any control, which easily affected the quality of their studies. Therefore, the new regulations also require students to carefully consider and be responsible when registering for double majors.

ThursdayStudents can now enroll in a second degree program (formerly known as a double degree) starting from the third semester (second year) if their semester GPA is 2.0 or higher (previously the requirement was 2.5). This adjustment is in line with current practices and aims to provide more opportunities for students to pursue two majors simultaneously.

However, students will have to discontinue their second major if they achieve a failing grade in either major. The training institution must update the student's grades in both majors after each semester. This is a clearer and stricter regulation than before, so students need to carefully consider their academic goals.

FridayRegarding the selection and transfer between standard training programs and high-quality, talent-based, and internationally standardized programs: more specific regulations are needed regarding the scores and requirements for transferring and selecting students to these programs.

SaturdayFurthermore, regulations regarding transfers from other universities to VNU are clearer and stricter: students from other universities wishing to transfer to VNU's training facilities must not be first-year or final-year students, must have a GPA of 2.5 or higher, and must pass the aptitude test organized by VNU's training unit.

First time offering high-quality Master's degree training.

- So, Professor, what are the new points in the regulations regarding postgraduate training?

A particularly noteworthy new point in the master's degree training regulations is that Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU) will for the first time offer high-quality master's degree programs. This stems from VNU's experience; since 1997, VNU has pioneered the training of talented science bachelors and subsequently high-quality undergraduate programs. This model has since been replicated throughout the sector (in 2014, the Ministry of Education and Training issued a circular on high-quality undergraduate training). Now is the opportune time for VNU to pioneer high-quality master's degree training.

The conversion of pre-accumulated credits for postgraduate studies is also a new feature. Students in the talent, high-quality, and international standard training programs at Vietnam National University, Hanoi, who have completed at least four semesters, can register to pre-accumulate some credits in the master's program in the same or related field, provided they meet the following conditions (they must have written consent from the head of the training unit where they are studying; a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher; the master's training units must organize for eligible students to participate in pre-accumulated credits in a concentrated learning format with the students' classes; and in one semester, students in the talent, high-quality, and international standard programs can only register for a maximum of three courses in the master's program). This encourages students in the talent, high-quality, and international standard programs to have a clear direction in choosing to pursue postgraduate studies at Vietnam National University, Hanoi, from their undergraduate studies.

With the new regulations, the structure of master's degree programs will have to be developed and supplemented. The new regulations stipulate 45 credits for a one-and-a-half-year program (application-oriented) and 60 credits for a two-year program (research-oriented). This is a very important task, and Vietnam National University, Hanoi has issued guidelines and required postgraduate training units to focus their efforts on completing it in 2015 before the start of the new postgraduate course.

The new regulations also allow training institutions to choose which of the postgraduate entrance exam subjects can be replaced by a competency assessment test.

The new regulations allow for exemption from the foreign language entrance exam if the master's degree candidate already possesses a suitable foreign language certificate or diploma that meets the specific criteria stipulated in the regulations.

Similar to undergraduate studies, at the master's level, basic foreign language is merely a prerequisite course in the curriculum, and graduates need to demonstrate they meet the program's foreign language proficiency requirements for graduation. Specialized foreign language courses (if included in the postgraduate program) are offered and taught by the training institution.

Regarding the regulations on "correct," "related," and "different" majors, there are new changes. Specifically, a university degree is considered "correct" or "related" to the master's degree program if the undergraduate programs differ by less than 10% in both content and duration of the subject matter. A university degree is considered "related" to the master's degree program if the undergraduate programs differ by 10% to 40% in both content and duration of the subject matter (total number of class hours, credit units, or credits). A university degree is considered "different" from the master's degree program if they do not belong to the same group of disciplines or if the two undergraduate programs differ by more than 40% in both content and duration. Thus, this new ratio has been adjusted to be more stringent.

In addition, the new regulations include several stricter provisions such as: students are not allowed to change their major during their master's studies; lecturers must grade coursework within a maximum of 15 working days; to defend a master's thesis, the cumulative GPA required is 2.0 or higher (instead of 2.5 as in the previous regulations); the maximum thesis score is 9 points, with a maximum of 1 point added for theses where the student has published a relevant scientific article in a list of specialized scientific journals specified by the head of the training unit or where the application results have been approved in writing by the implementing institution; the new regulations also clearly define the forms of handling and disciplinary action if plagiarism occurs during the master's thesis writing process. Thus, it can be seen that the new regulations in training management are more stringent and specific. Postgraduate students are required to participate more actively in research activities and must have a very high sense of responsibility for the research results in their dissertations.

- How will this regulation be applied in the future? What should training units pay attention to during implementation, Professor?

This regulation applies to enrollment cohorts from 2015 onwards. Provisions related to thesis evaluation, degree recognition, and master's degree awarding procedures apply immediately to graduate students who defend their theses after January 1, 2015.

The two regulations contain many new points. Training units need to promptly and fully disseminate the two new training regulations to staff, lecturers, students, and postgraduate students; organize training for staff involved in the training management process at the school, faculty, and department levels, as well as staff involved in inspection, auditing, and supervision of training activities in the units.