International Education & Career Expo (IECE) 2011

In recent years, Vietnam’s GDP growth rates have been very strong compared to its South-East Asian neighbours. Its recent entry into WTO is expected to usher further changes in its economic structure, which will in turn help Vietnam become more competitive on the global market. Large multi-national corporations (MNCs) are driving the demand for skilled workforce. The service sector, in particular, has great potential to be Vietnam’s new engine of growth. According to ministry estimates, the country needs 10,000 to 15,000 skilled labourers in the fields of information technology, tourism, harbour management, shipbuilding, finance and banking. Vietnam’s Ministry of Education and Training (MoET) aims to have at least one Vietnamese institution recognized and accordingly ranked, as one of the world’s ‘top’ 200 universities by the year 2020 as well as 20,000 PhD holders by the same year. According to the Scheme for the Reform of the Education financing mechanism, 2009-2014, spending on HE is planned to reach US$1.2 billion by 2014. The education market in Vietnam provides a wide range of opportunities for foreign investment and partnerships. In fact, the MoET has openly encouraged foreign educational entities to be involved in the education and training sector. As the Education Industry in Vietnam is still at an infancy stage, Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom currently lead the list of most popular English speaking education destinations receiving Vietnamese students.