A female student from Cu Chi who studied while comforting her mentally ill mother has been accepted into Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology.

For many years, her study time was constantly interrupted by her mother's shouting, forcing her to abandon her studies to "comfort" her mentally ill mother. Despite this, Hong Nhung never gave up her dream of going to university, and in 2024 she became a freshman at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology.

Vừa học bài vừa ‘dỗ’ mẹ tâm thần, cô gái đậu vào trường Bách khoa - Ảnh 1. — Family is the driving force that reminds Hong Nhung to strive and change her destiny - Photo: DIEU QUI

In the recent high school graduation exam, based on her integrated aptitude test score and academic transcript review, Nguyen Thi Hong Nhung (19 years old) was admitted to the logistics program at the University of Technology (Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City).

At the age of 9, she had to comfort her sick mother.

We met Nhung on a rainy afternoon, as she was preparing to ride her motorbike from her home in Tan An Hoi commune (Cu Chi district, Ho Chi Minh City) to the university dormitory in Thu Duc City the next day, beginning her life as a freshman.

Our conversation was interrupted several times by loud, incoherent chatter coming from behind Nhung's mother's house.

Nhung grew up in a poor family in the commune. She has an older brother who is a third-year student at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology and Education. Two years ago, her brother received a scholarship from Tuoi Tre newspaper to help him get into university, and now he's introduced it to his younger sister.

For nearly 10 years, Nhung and her siblings were raised and sent to school thanks to their father's meager factory worker's salary, because their mother had been suffering from schizophrenia and stayed at home all that time. This was also a shock for little Hong Nhung, who was only 9 years old at the time, and for many years afterward…

Nhung confided that her father was a long-time worker at a mattress factory in the Northwest Cu Chi Industrial Zone. Every few months he had to take time off work, and the family had to call an ambulance from the Ho Chi Minh City Psychiatric Hospital to take Nhung's mother for check-ups and hospitalization for a few days. The cost of transportation, hospital fees, and medication was a significant expense for the family.

In the level four house full of traces of time, Nhung’s study corner and book storage are only in a small corner. She said that many times when she was doing math, she needed to concentrate hard but had to stop because her mother got sick.

"At times like that, I have to comfort her by singing, doing this and that to cheer her up, like soothing her, waiting for her to calm down before I can continue studying," she said. Nhung recounted that sometimes she felt tired and hurt to the point of crying, but then she felt more empathy and love for her mother. "When she was healthy, Mom loved the two of us very much."

Nhung's mother fell ill, and she had to figure things out and learn on her own as she grew up. She didn't have the opportunity to confide in or ask her mother for advice. However, she still had the comfort and encouragement of her father and older brother.

Vừa học bài vừa ‘dỗ’ mẹ tâm thần, cô gái đậu vào trường Bách khoa - Ảnh 2. — Nhung's mother fell ill suddenly, and for nearly 10 years, she had to learn everything on her own as she grew up - Photo: DIEU QUI

What used to be a source of pressure is now a motivation.

When Nhung received the news that she had been accepted into university after so much tireless effort, while the whole family rejoiced, her mother remained silent, showing no emotion, even when her daughter said goodbye before leaving to study far away.

Nhung never stopped wanting to learn. Seeing her father struggling to support four mouths to feed, and her mother frequently falling ill and needing to be taken to the hospital, she became even more determined to study hard so that she could have a stable job in the future, take care of her father, and have money for her mother's long-term treatment.

For the past two years, Nhung's brother has been working part-time, and after finishing her university entrance exams, she spent two months of summer commuting back and forth for four hours a day from her home to District 1 to sell goods for relatives, using an old motorbike given to her by an acquaintance. "Here, we mainly sell to foreign tourists . Besides practicing English, I've also learned a little Korean thanks to selling goods," she said.

Although he had some savings, Mr. Chau still primarily covered the tuition and living expenses for his two children. He was overjoyed to hear that his daughter had been accepted into university. However, he didn't know how he would manage the 15 million VND per year tuition fee. This was also Nhung's worry.

She confided, "The burden of providing for my education and my mother's illness have caused my father's back to become increasingly hunched. If I receive this scholarship, I will be able to get through the difficult period at the beginning of the school year and have time to work part-time to cover my tuition fees for the next semester. During my studies, I will also try to win scholarships from the school."

Mr. Chau said that for now, he can only afford to give his daughter a small amount of money for dormitory fees and living expenses. Nhung will wait a few days until her studies are settled and she's familiar with the roads before looking for a part-time job to help support the family. In addition, she will also inquire about low-interest student loan programs offered by her university.

Nữ sinh Củ Chi vừa học bài vừa dỗ mẹ bệnh tâm thần đã đậu Đại học Bách khoa TP.HCM - Ảnh 4. — Nhung has been an excellent student for many years. In addition, she won first prize in the district-level chess competition for four consecutive years. - Photo: DIEU QUI

Nhung said she chose to study logistics because she's interested in math and physics, even though she doesn't yet have a clear picture of her future career.

"Logistics is about supply chain and transportation, so there are many areas to work on. I plan to develop algorithms to make goods transportation as time-efficient and cost-effective as possible," Nhung said.

We invite you to join us in supporting students to attend school.

The Tuoi Tre newspaper's "Supporting Students to School 2024" program, launched on August 8th, is expected to award 1,100 scholarships with a total budget of over 20 billion VND (15 million VND for disadvantaged new students, 20 special scholarships worth 50 million VND each for the entire 4 years of study, plus learning equipment and gifts...).

With the motto "No young person should be prevented from attending university because of poverty," and "If new students face difficulties, Tuoi Tre is there for them" - this is a commitment to supporting new students throughout Tuoi Tre 's 20-year journey.

The program received contributions and support from the "Farmers' Companion" Fund - Binh Dien Fertilizer Joint Stock Company, the Vinacam Scholarship Fund - Vinacam Group Joint Stock Company, and the "Quang Tri Solidarity" and "Phu Yen Solidarity" clubs; the "Supporting Students to School" clubs in Thua Thien Hue, Quang Nam - Da Nang, Tien Giang - Ben Tre, Quang Ngai, and the Tien Giang - Ben Tre Business Association in Ho Chi Minh City, the German-Vietnamese Mutual Assistance and Cooperation Association (VSW), Nam Long Company, Nestlé Vietnam Co., Ltd., and other businesses, philanthropists, and numerous readers of Tuoi Tre newspaper.