Aug 02,2020
University in Can Tho promotes enterprise in university model
The Saigon Times
Professor Dr. Vo Tong Xuan (L), principal of Nam Can Tho University, and Tran Minh Hung, Editor-in-Chief of The Saigon Times Group, chair the seminar - PHOTO: THE SAIGON TIMES GROUP
HCMC - Nam Can Tho University in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho is one of the country’s pioneers in applying the enterprise in university model, which enables the students to intern, become familiar to the working environment, practice and improve their skills while they’re still at school.
The university is collaborating with its enterprises, including Nam Mien Nam Group, Nam Can Tho General Hospital Company and Nam Can Tho DNC Trade Company, to provide practical and work-based training to students of all faculties.
They are building research and development centers similar to real enterprises right in the university. Two centers have been put into operation, including the DNC Medicine Study Institute and the DNC Automobile Repair, Research and Development Workshop.
The centers are equipped with modern machinery and functional areas to meet the students’ and lecturers’ demand for practice and research.
Thanks to the new model, the university’s students are able to learn both soft and hard skills from the first year until the final year so that they can immediately become skilled workers after graduation.
Speaking at a seminar on promoting the enterprise in university model, which was jointly held by Nam Can Tho University and The Saigon Times Group on July 30, Nguyen Tien Dung, board chairman of Nam Can Tho University, said the city is reviewing the first phase of the model and building strategies to make it more efficient.
“This is a new model in Vietnam and there are not many universities that have been successful in applying the enterprise in university model. To help it develop stronger, there need to be legal basis, and the model’s advantages and challenges must be reviewed. In addition, the model should be applied sustainably to more universities in Vietnam,” he said.
Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Tri Kiem, head of the university’s Economics Faculty, said the model has proved its efficiency in enhancing the practicality of the training program through bridging the gap between theory and practice.
To make the model more effective and strengthen the enterprise-university partnership, he suggested the universities should have specific policies for the enterprises, build the comprehensive operation and management system and select experienced managers to manage the enterprises.
According to Nguyen Phuong Lam, director of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (VCCI) Can Tho branch, the enterprise in university model will contribute significantly to the development of highly skilled workforce, which is key to the socioeconomic development of the Mekong Delta region.
However, there has not been a policy mechanism for enterprises joining the model, hampering its development. The VCCI is supporting the universities and enterprises in developing the most suitable operation mechanism and ensuring their infrastructure meets the increasing need of the students and labor market in the context of a fast changing digital world.
Professor Dr. Vo Tong Xuan, principal of Nam Can Tho University, concluded that the primary aim of the enterprise in university model is to help the students intern right in the university. Through the model, the university can provide its students with real-life work experiences where they can apply academic and technical skills and develop their employability
However, the university’s enterprises have not been able to meet the students’ great intern demand. Therefore, it shall also work with enterprises outside the university to offer more opportunities to the students.
