Vietnamese student 'stranded' in Belarus

Despite receiving a scholarship under an agreement in Belarus, Nghia did not receive living expenses for 4-6 months and encountered many difficulties in his studies.

Le Trong Nghia, a student at the Vietnam Academy of Agriculture, was sent to study in Belarus by the Department of International Cooperation under an intergovernmental agreement between the two countries in 2022. On October 23, Nghia sent a "plea for help" to the Ministry of Education and Training because he was not accepted by the Belarusian side under this scholarship, causing delays in his studies and hardship in his life.

Nghia said that he and two other friends flew to Belarus last December. The scholarship included tuition fees, living expenses, health insurance, airfare, passport fees, visa fees, etc. Each month, the students received a living allowance of approximately 17.5 million VND (over 700 USD). Of this, Vietnam contributed 10 million VND, and the rest was covered by Belarus (excluding the time spent studying Russian).

Polessky State University, Pinsk, Belarus. Photo: Just Arrived

According to Nghia, the three students had to take a Russian language course before starting their majors in early September this year. Nghia was sent to study Business Administration at Polessky State University and studied the language there along with another student. The other male student studied at a different university.

However, in June, Nghia was informed by the university's international cooperation office that all Vietnamese students going to Belarus in 2022 would not be accepted under the agreement. The reason given by the university was that the Belarusian Ministry of Education and Training had not received the relevant documents from the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training.

"If we want to continue studying our major in Belarus, we have to pay the same fees as all other international students," Nghia said.

The male student and his friends contacted and submitted relevant documents to the Ministry of Education and Training in July. In October, they received a document from the Belarusian Embassy in Vietnam from the Department of International Cooperation, stating that all three would be accepted. The Department instructed them to bring the document to the school for enrollment under the agreement. However, the school stated that this was a tuition-free scholarship granted by the school.

On October 13th, Nghia was admitted to his major. However, classes had already started on September 4th, meaning he had been absent for half a semester, had no attendance record, missed exams, and lost a lot of fundamental knowledge.

"In Belarus, if we have poor academic results or a high attendance rate, we could be expelled," Nghia explained. Nghia and his friend are also worried about having to repeat the year, losing the chance to get an excellent degree.

Furthermore, from the day he arrived until May 2023, Nghia did not receive any living expenses from the Vietnamese side. His family back home was struggling financially but had to borrow money and ask relatives to send it to Nghia to cover his living expenses and dormitory fees. In May, the Ministry transferred Nghia's living expenses for seven months, but then stopped. The student said that during that time he had to rely on rice, vegetables, and food provided by the Vietnamese community in Belarus.

"I had hoped for a bright future, wanting to study abroad so I wouldn't be a burden to my family, but I never expected things to turn out this way," Nghia said.

Nghia stated that according to the 2022 enrollment announcement for studying in Belarus under the agreement, those who do not complete the training program, drop out voluntarily, or are forced to withdraw must reimburse the training costs. Therefore, if he returns to Vietnam, the male student may have to compensate hundreds of millions of dong, but staying without receiving living expenses will be very difficult. The normal cost of living in Belarus is currently around 10 million dong per month, but for international students, this amount will be higher due to insurance, residence permits, etc. Dormitory fees are also five times higher than for local students.

Therefore, Nghia and his friends hope to be re-enrolled next year, still under the agreement.

On the afternoon of October 25th, Mr. Nguyen Hai Thanh, Deputy Director of the International Cooperation Department, Ministry of Education and Training, confirmed that they had received information about the three students since July. The Department advised the Ministry's leadership to send official letters to the Belarusian Embassy in Vietnam and the Vietnamese Embassy in Belarus, requesting that the three students be admitted to study their chosen majors under the agreement.

According to Mr. Thanh, the Belarusian Embassy in Vietnam announced on October 5th that they would accept the students but would only waive tuition fees.

Regarding Nghia's request, he said that the Belarusian side does not agree to allow international students to suspend their studies for a year, unless there is a health reason or they have to fulfill military service obligations.

"The Department will coordinate with the Belarusian side to ensure the rights and policies for students studying under the agreement are protected," Mr. Thanh shared.

Explaining the delay in providing living expenses, Mr. Thanh said that the Russia-Ukraine conflict prevented the transfer of funds. The plan to transfer the money to the students' accounts in Vietnam has also not yet been approved. Regarding the initial refusal of the Belarusian Ministry of Education and Training to accept the documents, Mr. Thanh did not provide a specific answer.

The Belarusian government scholarship is part of the agreement on educational cooperation between Belarus and Vietnam, with 20 scholarships awarded annually, evenly distributed across undergraduate, master's, doctoral, and internship levels. To be considered for an undergraduate scholarship, students must have an overall GPA of 7 or higher for their three years of high school and their first semester of university. If applying from grade 12, in addition to academic achievement, students must also have won awards in regional, national, or international competitions for academic excellence.

Dawn

Source link: https://vnexpress.net/nam-sinh-viet-mac-ket-o-belarus-4668361.html