University of New England DUNE: DigitalUNE All Theses And Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 5-2019 The Need For Academic Reform In Vietnamese Higher Education (VHE) To Align With Employers’ Expectations Hoang-Yen (Maya) T. Dang University of New England Follow this and additional works at: https://dune.une.edu/theses Part of the Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons, and the Educational Leadership Commons © Hoang-Yen T. Dang Preferred Citation Dang, Hoang-Yen (Maya) T., "The Need For Academic Reform In Vietnamese Higher Education (VHE) To Align With Employers’ Expectations" (2019). All Theses And Dissertations. 210. https://dune.une.edu/theses/210 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at DUNE: DigitalUNE. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Theses And Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DUNE: DigitalUNE. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE NEED FOR ACADEMIC REFORM IN VIETNAMESE HIGHER EDUCATION (VHE) TO ALIGN WITH EMPLOYERS’ EXPECTATIONS By Hoang-Yen T. Dang (aka Maya Dang) A DISSERTATION Presented to the Affiliated Faculty of The College of Graduate and Professional Studies at the University of New England Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of Requirements For the degree of Doctor of Education Portland & Biddeford, Maine April 20, 2019 Hoang-Yen T. Dang (aka Maya Dang) © 2019 ii Hoang-Yen T. Dang (aka Maya Dang) April 20, 2019 Educational Leadership THE NEED FOR ACADEMIC REFORM IN VIETNAMESE HIGHER EDUCATION (VHE) TO ALIGN WITH EMPLOYERS’ EXPECTATIONS Abstract The effort to comprehensively reform Vietnamese higher education (VHE) in order to produce an educated workforce better able to contribute to economic development is a major concern not only of educators and the Vietnamese government but also of employers, workers, and the general populace. Successful implementation of VHE’s “Vision 2020” relies on legal change together with macro-policies to support these educational initiatives. For the purposes of this study, however, the author focused on the current state of VHE in providing employable graduates to meet the needs of Vietnam’s knowledge economy in the 21st century. In particular, through an analysis of the advanced training programs (ATPs), the author argues that the wider use and expansion of ATPs is the key to the academic reform necessary to meet the expectations of Vietnamese employers in the 21st century. iii University of New England Doctor of Education Educational Leadership This dissertation was presented by Hoang-Yen T. Dang (aka Maya Dang) It was presented on April 10, 2019 and approved by: Leslie Hitch, Ed.D. Lead Advisor Northeastern University Laura Bertonazzi, Ed.D. Secondary Advisor University New England Rick Arrowood, Ph.D Affiliate Committee Member Northeastern University Michelle Collay, Ph.D. Affiliate Committee Member University New England iv ACKOWLEDGEMENTS My father used to say: “I have nothing to give you. I can only try my best to give you an education. Only knowledge can change your life.” I promised myself that once I achieved success as an entrepreneur, I would devote myself to higher education in Vietnam, my country of birth, in order to give Vietnamese youth a chance to widen their perspective and reach out to the world. I am grateful that the U.S. has given me an opportunity to grow these past years. This thesis is only the beginning of my life-long project to bring American pedagogical standards to Vietnam. On this day of my graduation, I would like to thank my professors, particularly Dr. Hitch, Dr. Betonazzi, Dr. Collay, and Dr. Arrowood, who have been instrumental in my journey so far. I want to thank my three daughters and lastly, my late husband. Thank you all for your encouragement and support. v TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1 Statement of the Problem ..................................................................................................... 3 Purpose of the Study ............................................................................................................ 4 Research Questions .............................................................................................................. 5 Conceptual Framework ........................................................................................................ 5 Assumptions and Limitations ............................................................................................... 6 Significance ......................................................................................................................... 7 CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW .................................................................................. 9 The Impact of Vietnam’s Cultural and Historical Legacy ................................................... 10 Milestones of Vietnamese Higher Education Reform ......................................................... 11 The Birth of Non-Public Universities .......................................................................... 14 The goal of establishing private higher educational institutions ............................ 14 Implementation of diversifying the VHE system .................................................. 15 Current state of private higher educational institutions ......................................... 16 Legislative Reforms ...................................................................................... 19 Governance of Vietnamese higher education ........................................................ 22 Academic Reforms ...................................................................................................... 23 Curricular Reforms ..................................................................................................... 26 Pilot programs of the Advanced Training Program (Cuong Trinnh Tiên Tiến) ...... 30 Assessing the 10-year implementation of the advanced training programs ............ 31 Textbook and teaching materials .......................................................................... 31 Development of facilities and the learning conditions of the students ................... 31 vi Development of faculty and managers of the ATPs .............................................. 32 Achievement of graduates .................................................................................... 32 Publication and research on the advanced training programs (ATPs) .................... 34 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 34 Difficulties expanding the Advanced Training Program ....................................... 35 Current State of Vietnamese Higher Education after Primary Reforms ............................... 36 Increasing Unemployment of Graduates ...................................................................... 37 The Poor Quality of the Educated Workforce .............................................................. 40 Limited Publications ................................................................................................... 40 Substandard Intellectual Property ................................................................................ 41 Faltering Innovation .................................................................................................... 42 VHE’s Disconnect from its mission ...................................................................... 43 Employers’ lack of connection with the classroom ............................................... 43 Graduates’ soft skills do not meet employers’ expectations .................................. 47 Vietnamese higher education depends on state universities ................................... 48 Official Language in Higher Educational Institutes ..................................................... 49 The Potential of Vietnamese Higher Education .................................................................. 49 Budget for National Education .................................................................................... 50 Strong Digital Potential ............................................................................................... 51 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................... 52 Conceptual Framework ...................................................................................................... 52 CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY AND DATA COLLECTION ........................................... 54 Setting ............................................................................................................................... 55 Site, Participants, and Sample ............................................................................................ 55 vii Data Collection Methods .................................................................................................... 55 Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 60 Ethics and Potential Limitations ......................................................................................... 61 CHAPTER 4 ............................................................................................................................ 62 CONTENT ANALYSES AND FINDINGS ...........................................................................