Vietnamese female student 'wins' 3.3 billion scholarship from Canada's most prestigious university

(Dan Tri) - Winning a scholarship worth 192,000 CAD (more than 3.3 billion VND) from the University of Toronto, Pham Khanh Linh wants to apply the knowledge she has learned to pursue her dream of building a comprehensiveeducational model.

Relationship with education

Pham Khanh Linh (born in 2005) is a former student of the English 2 class at the High School for the Gifted, Hanoi National University of Education. Khanh Linh is currently interested in the fields of circular economy and education. The female student confided that she wants to pursue her dream of building a comprehensive educational model through the fields of economics and finance.

Khanh Linh said: "I used to think that I would never pursue education in my life. My father and mother both work in the education sector. Seeing my parents working hard on their homework until late at night or having severe sore throats with salaries not as high as other professions, I did not have much sympathy for this field before.

However, through participating in activities and experiences, I realized the value of education for people and society. Being an educator is not necessarily about standing on the podium, but I want to apply what I have learned in the field of economics and finance to bring the value of education further."

Khanh Linh participates in the Pedagogical Ambassador contest for the 2022-2023 school year. (Photo: NVCC).

During the application process, Khanh Linh always prioritized choosing schools with three factors: quality of education, living environment, and job and settlement opportunities. Therefore, the female student set her goal of entering prestigious universities in Canada, Finland and Australia.

After 3 years of preparing documents, Khanh Linh received a scholarship worth 192,000 CAD (more than 3.3 billion VND) from the University of Toronto, Canada's leading university. In addition, the female student was also offered 10 scholarships from prestigious schools in Australia and Finland worth more than 4 billion VND.

Khanh Linh successfully received admission letters with scholarships from Canada such as: University of Alberta, York University; Finland (Aalto University).

Not only that, the female student also received invitations from major universities in Australia: University of Sydney, Monash University, University of Queensland, University of Technology Sydney. In addition, the female student also received an 80% scholarship for Business Administration at VinUni University and admission letters from National Economics University and Foreign Trade University.

Khanh Linh said: "The intention to study abroad began to grow in grade 10 when I had the opportunity to participate in extracurricular activities and meet friends from many countries. With multicultural experiences and a love of exploring and challenging myself, I was determined to set a goal of applying for a scholarship to study abroad."

To own many prestigious scholarships, Khanh Linh has gone through a difficult and tiring journey. "During the application process, I encountered many difficulties, but I was always lucky to receive support from my family and close friends.

When I started doing it, I also encountered the same problem as my friends: peer pressure.

Seeing the achievements of my friends around me and comparing myself to them made me feel like a failure. In addition, having to search for scholarships and filter information by myself was also a big challenge for me. To have a perfect application, I had to consult many channels, seminars and ask for advice from seniors to avoid falling into the "trap" of information that made me confused," Khanh Linh confided.

Essay inspired by mother

Linh said that at the end of 10th grade, she had to study at home due to the pandemic. Therefore, Linh was able to take advantage of her time and participate in many activities both at home and abroad. She became a media ambassador and an intern for programs and projects to gain experience.

By actively participating in extracurricular activities, by grade 12, Khanh Linh had accumulated many skills. Through that, the female student could understand herself better. However, for Linh, studying is always a prerequisite in the process of hunting for scholarships, so the female student always focuses on grades and academic achievements.

According to Khanh Linh, during peak times, to ensure studying in class, reviewing for certification exams and participating in activities, she will make long-term (1-3 months) and short-term (1 week) plans in advance.

However, the girl also confessed that she is easily distracted when studying. "Just one message notification and I will hold my phone for an hour. Therefore, to maintain concentration, I use the Pomodoro method (time management method) and Study with me videos (videos ranging from 30 minutes to 10 hours long recording the self-study process of Youtubers)," Linh said.

Portrait of Pham Khanh Linh. (Photo: NVCC).

Khanh Linh shared that in the steps of writing essays, writing resumes (a summary of personal profiles) and creating portfolios (a summary of projects that the candidate has participated in), the female student used her mother as inspiration for her writing.

"I want to thank my mother for being the inspiration for me to write my essay. She was always there to encourage and take care of me when I wanted to give up," Linh said.

In the essay, Linh used the story of her mother to express her personal thoughts on the role of a mother: "Sometimes, the praise given to mothers has unintentionally created a discourse that binds responsibility, inhibiting personal development.

When she was young, my mother had many dreams, but because of her responsibility to her family, she missed those dreams. Therefore, she once told me that she always wanted her daughter to have the opportunity to try, strive and pursue her dreams. That was the inspiration that helped me get good results after I wrote this essay," Linh confided.

Linh said that there were times when she felt she was not good enough and wanted to stop everything. However, her mother's encouragement and support helped her overcome everything.

Take a year off

Khanh Linh feels lucky that her parents always respect her decision. Instead of opposing, Linh's whole family will talk to each other to analyze the problem, give advice and help their children as much as possible. Therefore, the family is also a great source of motivation for Linh to go on today's journey.

Khanh Linh took a souvenir photo with her friends at the CDS Debate Club - CSP Debate Society (Specialized Pedagogy High School). (Photo: NVCC).

Before studying abroad, Khanh Linh considered the loneliness and differences in living environment such as culture and people when living far from home. Therefore, facing these barriers, the female student decided to spend a year at home to cultivate and develop herself in terms of knowledge, skills and psychology before going to another country.

Khanh Linh is currently taking a gap year (a 12-month vacation), discovering herself and making plans and projects. "A gap year really taught me a lot of things and I think I'm ready for a new life in another country," Linh said.

Ms. Thao, Linh's mother, confided: "For us, because we cannot choose how our children are born, each child has their own characteristics in personality and thinking. As our child grows up, we hope that our child will have the opportunity to freely explore and develop his or her abilities.

The family will always accompany, support and give advice to you. Witnessing each step of your growth is a happiness for parents like you and me."

Sharing about her future plans, Khanh Linh said: "I am spending time studying short-term courses and completing education-related projects that I have planned in advance. In 4 years of university, I want to spend more time researching the education plans that I want to pursue in the more distant future."

Through that, Linh hopes that young people who are planning to study abroad will dare to try so they will never regret it.

Khanh Linh's academic achievements and extracurricular activities:

- GPA grade 10: 9.5; grade 11: 9.5; grade 12: 9.6

- IELTS 8.0

- Representative of the Specialized Pedagogical High School participated in the cooperation program with Japanese students

- Research assistant on the topic "Developing the export of processed and manufactured goods to meet the requirements of the European Union market" under the guidance of Dr. Dao Truong Thanh, published in the magazine "Industry and Trade" No. 76 (October 2022)

- Co-author of the research topic "Promoting innovation in green startups towards a circular economy in Vietnam" with Master Vu Tri Tuan, participating in the National Scientific Conference at the National Economics University

- President of CDS Debate Club - CSP Debate Society (Specialized Pedagogy High School) school year 2021-2022

- Encouragement Prize for excellent students at the University of Education in English 2022-2023

- Champion of ISME Debate Contest 2022 organized by National Economics University

- Top 10 finalists of Mount 2 Public Speaking Contest 2022, sponsored by VinUni University

- Top 3 best speakers in the final round of Nguyen Hue Debate Open (debate competition) 2022.

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