Fifteen years have passed since the establishment of the Faculty of International Studies, University of Social Sciences and Humanities – Vietnam National University, Hanoi. On this anniversary, I would like to recount a few things about those challenging early years.Back then, in 1993, amidst the nationwide enthusiasm for implementing the Doi Moi (Renovation) policy, the newly established Vietnam National University, Hanoi, saw its units within the former University of Hanoi all considering expansion and development to meet the demands of training and scientific research in the new context. In the History Department, the idea of opening new academic programs was ever-present. In 1993, three new programs were established: Oriental Studies, International Studies, and Tourism Studies. The following year, Archival Studies was added. Professor Vu Minh Giang, the Dean of the History Department, assigned me – then the Vice Dean and Head of the World History Department – to prepare a plan for establishing the International Studies program. In the 1993-1994 academic year, the first cohort of approximately 60 students enrolled in International Studies, which was considered a separate program within the History Department and integrated into the university's overall system. By the following academic year, 1994-1995, the number of applicants was overwhelmingly high, exceeding 200, requiring them to be divided into two classes called K39A and K39B. This demonstrated the opening of the new major to meet the demands of society, which increasingly sought to open its doors to the outside world. Classes had to be rented at the Water Resources University, later moved to the Thuong Dinh campus for evening classes, sometimes even in the old cafeteria or in Me Tri. In October 1995, the National University officially decided to establish the International Studies, Oriental Studies, Tourism Studies, and shortly after, Archival Studies faculties, all separated from the History Faculty, with the first heads of these faculties being professors and associate professors from the History Faculty. Therefore, when students of K38 and K39 graduated in 1997 and 1998, although they "originated" from the History Faculty, they immediately received a Bachelor's degree in International Studies. And now we have the K55 undergraduate cohort and the K7 postgraduate cohort. In that initial phase, the most difficult task was defining the goals and training program. The question to answer was: where would graduates go after graduation, and what jobs would they be able to do? At that time, Vietnam only had the Institute of International Relations (now the Diplomatic Academy) training diplomatic staff. So, what would the direction of the Faculty of International Studies be? Would it overlap with existing programs? And therefore, was it necessary to open this major? That was a pressing question that the Faculty and the University constantly had to answer to the management levels of the Ministry of Education and Training, as well as explain to students and the public. Stemming from the mission of the National University and the task of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities as a basic science university, the main direction had to be to build a foundation of basic science in international studies. Naturally, that research had to be linked to the practical needs of society and to find "job opportunities" for students. By studying the curricula of international studies programs, primarily those from the United States, and adapting them to the Vietnamese context, the Faculty's training program gradually took shape. Through continuous learning and experience-sharing, the program became increasingly complete. The first graduating classes all found employment related to their field of study or closely related to it. They successfully applied their academic knowledge and adapted to their specific work environments, with most achieving success. This result demonstrated that the chosen direction and training program were fundamentally correct, and were subsequently adjusted and supplemented to better align with societal needs and enhance international integration capabilities. A significant challenge in the early days of the Faculty was building a teaching staff for International Studies. As this was a completely new field in Vietnam, there were no lecturers with formal training in international studies. Therefore, based on the subjects in the training program, the initial teaching staff were often newly graduated from fields such as History, Economics, Foreign Languages, etc., and relied on external collaborators in diplomacy and international relations. A pressing need was to ensure that university lecturers had at least a master's degree. Faced with this urgent need, all the young staff members were determined to pursue postgraduate studies in their respective fields, and as a result, within 4-5 years, all lecturers successively earned their master's degrees. From there, many became doctoral candidates, earning PhDs. Many were also sent abroad for further training, significantly improving their skills. Later, the new generation of lecturers had more advantages thanks to scholarships, allowing them to study abroad immediately after graduation, thus building a solid foundation of knowledge. As a Faculty of International Studies, international integration was also a pressing need. In the early days, the focus was primarily on researching foreign training programs. Many American professors enthusiastically collected and sent the department a whole box of books containing training programs from many prestigious universities in the US and around the world. This was the first assistance in building the basic foundation for the department. Later, the heads of the department, Dr. Le The Que and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pham Quang Minh, made many effective contributions to expanding external relations, especially securing funding from the Asia Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the KAS Foundation, etc., for staff training, translating reference books, organizing training courses, and scientific conferences. The participation of lecturers in scientific activities abroad, as well as welcoming foreign scientists to the department, became a regular practice, benefiting the development of the department's training and scientific research. From these initial steps, it can be said that the primary reason for success was the consensus throughout the faculty and the entire university, striving for common goals in training and scientific research. Much remains to be done, such as opening doctoral programs – something many alumni have longed for; improving the capacity of departments; and developing comprehensive basic and specialized textbooks… all of which require even greater effort and focus. As someone who contributed to the early development of the Faculty of International Studies, and now that it has grown steadily, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the faculty members and students in the Faculty – those who have truly contributed to its growth to what it is today. I would like to express my special respect to Dr. Le The Que, an exemplary and humble teacher, a dedicated and impartial head of department who laid the solid foundation for the department's development. I also wish to extend my appreciation and trust to Associate Professor Pham Quang Minh – the current head of department, who consistently demonstrates dynamism, intelligence, a sense of responsibility, and a sociable style. All these qualities have contributed to creating the image of a vibrant, united department with a strong scientific reputation and a prominent position in society. Finally, I cannot fully express my feelings during these joyful days celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Department of International Studies, but I sincerely hope that everyone will accept from me – a retired teacher – my most sincere and heartfelt sentiments.
November 15, 2010
