Dan Tri – In June, 55 Vietnamese students will depart for Australia on Australian Government funded scholarships to pursue master’s degrees.
These outstanding awardees, drawn from central and provincial governments, NGOs, academic institutions and the private sector, will undertake study in a range of areas that support Vietnam’s long-term development. These include natural resources management, entrepreneurship, gender equality, disability inclusion, and vocational education management.
To win this prestigious scholarship from the Australian Government, the candidates went through an application and interview process. Applicants are assessed on their professional and personal qualities, academic competence and, most importantly, their potential to address development challenges in Vietnam.
Scholarships “hunting” efforts and dream of contributing to the development of the seafood industry
Nguyen Huu Huy Hoang (born 1996) is one of 55 new Australia Awards recipients this year. Hoang currently works at the Vietnam Tuna Association and will study Marine Science and Management at James Cook University in Australia.
Nguyen Huu Huy Hoang (born 1996) is one of 55 new Australia Awards recipients this year.
“This scholarship presents a great opportunity for personal development, especially for someone like me who is working in the seafood industry. Australia has a developed seafood industry, so I am very much looking forward to going there to study, practice and improve my knowledge and skills, and develop my professional network, so that I can contribute more to fishery improvement projects when I return to Vietnam,” Hoang shared.
Applying for an Australia Awards Scholarship is a competitive process. It took Hoang two to three months to prepare his application. “You need to write an essay which answers what you need and what the Australian and Vietnamese governments expect from you, and identify the key issues in diplomatic relations between Australia and Vietnam,” Hoang said.
A big challenge that applicants encounter is balancing their work and application preparation. Hoang was managing a number of seafood projects which required frequent travels and heavy workload. “If you can’t manage the application process effectively, you may have trouble with both work and scholarship application deadlines. Therefore, those who want to apply for a scholarship should prepare a good plan and arrange their work properly,” Hoang shared.
He further added that writing a 2,000-character essay is another challenge, which requires writers to be clear, concise, and easy to understand.
Nguyen Huu Huy Hoang and new awardees ready for departure for Australia.
For the interview round, Hoang worked in partnership with another applicant to practice interview questions and answers, and build confidence.
As Hoang’s departure date for Australia nears, he is looking forward to the learning professional knowledge in the seafood industry and connecting with leading industry experts. “Vietnam’s seafood industry is short of young and skilled workers. My ambition is to be an aspiration for young people to engage in this industry and develop themselves,” Hoang shared.
Make your own story special
Lo Van Long, born in 1991, is from Thai ethnic group. He is ready for departure to Australia to pursue his master’s degree as an Australia Awards scholar.
Lo Van Long receiving a scholarship certificate.
Long works for Samaritan’s Purse in Vietnam, an organisation that works on anti-trafficking and child protection. Previously, he worked with other NGOs and engaged in community development and child protection. Long will study Social Work at the University of Melbourne.
Lo Van Long’s passion about community activities is grounded in his special childhood.
He was born in a poor village in Tuan Giao district, Dien Bien province. When he was five years old, his parents divorced, and he and two younger brothers were raised by their mother alone. He was tempted to drop out school a few times because of his family’s financial difficulties.
Long says he is not a smart person, but a very persistent one. He tried very hard and earned a degree in social work from the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Hanoi National University. He went on to work hard and won the prestigious Australia Awards Scholarship, which is particularly special considering completing 12th grade is already something to be proud of in his province.
“My own childhood experience shows me that a loose, unhealthy family relationship not only affects the husband and wife relationship but also greatly affects the well-being of young children. The reason I am devoted to social work is I wish to contribute to reducing domestic violence and strengthen the relationship between family members,” Long said.
In the essay Long submitted with his application for the Australia Awards Scholarship, he shared his childhood story and expressed his desire to contribute to his homeland through social work. Long believed that this essay was ‘selling point’ in his application.
In preparation for the interview, Long studied the Scholarship policies very carefully and identified priorities. According to Long, the key interview success is demonstrating a match between the applicant’s strengths and the Scholarship priorities.
55 new Vietnamese scholars receiving Australia Awards Scholarship certificates.
Long is now prepared for the trip to Australia. He shared that upon completion of his study in Australia and returning to Vietnam, he wanted to establish a professional marriage and family consultation center to provide marriage counseling services to support families at risk of divorce or marital crisis, contributing to improving wellbeing of families and children’s welfare.
“I believe the wellbeing of a family is important to both adults and children. Therefore, I will do all I can to realise what I believe in,” Long said.
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Since 1974, Australia has supported over 6,000 Vietnamese to build their skills through the Australia Awards Scholarships initiative. “We are very pleased to continue to support Vietnam build its skills and capacity. These scholarship students are future leaders who will strengthen the Australia-Vietnam partnership and will contribute to addressing local and regional challenges well into the future.” said Australia’s Ambassador to Vietnam, HE Robyn Mudie.
Australia is recognised as a leader in world-class education. There were nearly 25,000 Vietnamese students studying in Australia in 2021 and an estimated 70,000 Australian alumni in Vietnam. This network represents a wealth of knowledge, expertise and influence, with many alumni being leaders in their respective fields and making valuable contributions to Vietnam’s development.
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Source: Nguyen Lien – Dan tri
