University and College Admissions 2020: Candidates need to be more realistic when applying for admission

Prof. Dr. Hoang Anh Tuan provides career counseling for students in 2019

Regarding the issue of enrollment and career guidance, Prof. Dr. Hoang Anh Tuan - Vice Principal of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities (Vietnam National University, Hanoi) shared with Education & Times Newspaper.

- This year, the University of Social Sciences and Humanities has opened new majors in Cultural Studies and Korean Studies. Could you introduce these new majors to candidates?

- After a period of preparation, we have decided to enroll in Cultural Studies and Korean Studies.Admission criteriaEach major has about 50 - 60 students.

Cultural Studies is a subject that specializes in researching fields within the cultural category, including: Basic cultural content and fields related to culture from humanities, nature, science, and society. This is a field that will fully converge all the achievements of basic sciences such as: Literature, History, Philosophy... plus the trend of modern cultural management.

The Cultural Studies major provides basic knowledge of social sciences and humanities, including a system of knowledge about culture, theoretical cultural studies and applied cultural studies. At the same time, the major also focuses on training hard and soft skills such as: Teamwork, presentation, analysis, application of learned knowledge into practice, problem-solving skills and social responsibility.

Cultural Studies also provides information on how to organize work, use foreign languages, information technology in the professional field, have the ability to self-improve, be independent in research, and update knowledge. This major will help students have the ability to argue, present problems well in many different environments and have the awareness of lifelong self-study, know how to manage time, organize their own work, and complete the set goals.

Korean Studies is an in-depth study of Korea, including: Korean culture, history, economy, national character, language... The training program will help equip in-depth foundational knowledge of Korean language and culture, the ability to participate in the domestic, regional and global labor market. In addition to knowledge of Korean culture, country and people, Korean Studies graduates can use Korean language fluently in communication, research, teaching; have the ability to translate and interpret Korean - Vietnamese, Vietnamese - Korean.

- Many people say that these are two fields that are “picky” about candidates. So what are the job opportunities for graduates of these two fields?

- We train students in the direction of: Learning one thing but being able to do many things. Therefore, students graduating from Cultural Studies can work in different fields. Firstly, researchers, specializing in cultural research at institutes, research institutes or social science and humanities research centers across the country.

Second, teaching and training in cultural sciences at universities, colleges, vocational schools, vocational schools on culture - information, politics or state administration and social organizations. Third, management at organizations, state agencies in the fields of culture, information, tourism, museums... Fourth, editor of cultural columns at magazines, press agencies, or translator, editor of textbooks, editor of documents, comics, poetry, literature...

Korean Studies is considered to have many prospects in the trend of regional and global integration. After graduation, you can easily take on jobs related to your major such as: Translation and interpretation specialist at diplomatic agencies, embassies, international organizations, Korean political organizations in Vietnam and vice versa; Marketing specialist, event organizer, trade transaction specialist... or transaction guide specialist with Korean partners.

Admissions Consulting Day 2019 in Hanoi

- Recently, the career choice trends of candidates have changed a lot. What is your assessment of this phenomenon?

- The 4.0 industrial revolution creates great pressure on work. Therefore, career trends have been, are and will change very quickly in the near future. Even this year, due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is predicted that the career structure will have many changes. Therefore, candidates must be more realistic when registering for a major. They must know how to integrate their passion with their abilities and the career trends of society.

- Currently, all training sectors and universities are communicating and advertising to attract candidates. So does this make it difficult for candidates to choose a career and school, sir?

- I think that communication is an essential part of training and recruitment. Providing information is necessary for students to orient their future careers. But in reality, many universities do very strong communication, creating an attractive appearance and appearance. Accordingly, many candidates register based on those appearances even though they have no strengths and passion for the field of study.

However, in recent years, candidates have become more realistic when choosing a career compared to 5-7 years ago. That is, not too many people arechoose a career based on feelings, or choose according to trends and arrangements of parents.

- As a career consultant with many years of experience, what advice do you have for candidates?

- I emphasize once again: You should not choose a career based on trends or the crowd because it can create bad consequences. Many students, after studying for 1-2 years, discover that they are not passionate about the career they have chosen. It is a pity to drop out of school, but continuing to study becomes a pressure. In fact, some students have suffered from depression.

Therefore, when choosing a major or school, students need to consider factors such as strengths, abilities, passions, etc. Choosing a career requires reason, not emotions or trends. Regardless of what major you study, whether it is classical or modern, if you do not have passion, you will only be "mediocre" in the future, and it will be difficult to break through in your work or start a business.

Thank you!