The year 2025 marks an important milestone for the vocational education system when colleges across the country return to the common admission system of the Ministry of Education and Training .
Although joining the "race" late, colleges promise to bring many advantages to candidates, especially in the context of the market "thirsty" for highly skilled human resources.
To clarify these advantages as well as provide information on new and important points of college admissions, Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper will organize a talk show - Online consultation with the topic "Choosing college, many advantages for success" at 9:00 a.m. on August 14.
The program has the participation of consulting experts:
- Dr. Le Si Hai, Principal of Binh Minh Saigon College;
- Ms. Nguyen Thi Mong Lanh, Director of Admissions and Communications Center, Saigon Polytechnic College;
- Mr. Nguyen Huu Tho - Director of Consulting and Admissions Center, Saigon College of Tourism Technology;
- Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Chieu Anh - Head of Communications and Admissions Department, Van Lang Saigon College;
The program is organized with the support of colleges, reported online on the electronic newspaper Nguoi Lao Dong , and broadcast live (livestream) on the newspaper's social networking platforms.
Readers are invited to follow and ask questions in the box below for guests to answer directly on the program.
The program will be broadcast online from 9am on August 14th.
The program is sponsored by Binh Minh Saigon College, Saigon Polytechnic College, Saigon Tourism Technical College, and Van Lang Saigon College.
The speakers were given the book "30 years of journalism" by journalist To Dinh Tuan - Editor-in-Chief of Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper.
The program begins
The year 2025 marks a major turning point in enrollment, when candidates will take the high school graduation exam for the first time under the 2018 general education program.
During the journey of implementing the program "Bringing school to candidates" organized annually by Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper across provinces and cities, the organizing committee has noticed a remarkable reality that many students really want to study at college but because of the prejudice that "going to university is still better", they have missed opportunities that match their abilities and passion.
- As someone with many years of experience in career guidance, I would like to invite Dr. Le Si Hai, Principal of Binh Minh Saigon College, to share more specifically about the advantages of studying at college. How has the vocational education model developed in the world and is university the only option to achieve success?
- Dr. Le Si Hai, Principal of Binh Minh Saigon College : Currently, candidates are in the process of choosing to study at university or college.
When choosing to study at college, students graduate early, have the opportunity to succeed early when the study time is only 2-2.5 years, and at the same time, saving time is saving money.
In our country, the rate of secondary school students entering vocational training is only about 8%, lower than other countries in the Southeast Asian region.
Studying at university is the dream of many students, but it is not the only path to success. Studying at college also brings success when you make the right choice.
Dr. Le Si Hai
- Ms. Nguyen Thi Mong Lanh, Director of Admissions Center of Saigon Polytechnic College : The labor market is in need of many workers with strengths in career orientation. College students are trained in-depth in career skills with 70% of the time spent on practice, so when they start working, they will have an advantage.
Studying at university or college are different choices in terms of direction. It is important that when choosing, you must state your reasons in a convincing way. If college students want to study at college, they still have a wide path to university and higher education.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Mong Lanh
Indeed, the stage of choosing the right career and the right school is extremely difficult for candidates as well as their families. Many students who passed the entrance exam to top universities were "broken", had to drop out of school because of the wrong major or lack of financial resources to cover their studies.
Coming to today’s program, can the guests share more specifically about the current strengths of the school? After graduation, can students transfer to university?
- Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Chieu Anh - Head of Communications and Admissions Department, Van Lang Saigon College, said: Currently, our school trains more than 30 majors in 6 groups of majors with high and stable recruitment needs. In addition to traditional technology majors, the school also expands advanced majors such as semiconductor technology, artificial intelligence technology and automotive technology.
In particular, the beauty care industry is attracting great interest from many students. Even many people with university degrees still return to school to study this 'hot' industry.
Regarding future orientation, students can rest assured to study exclusively at Van Lang University. The school has also signed cooperation agreements with more than 500 domestic and foreign enterprises, opening up many job and internship opportunities for students.
Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Chieu Anh
- Mr. Nguyen Huu Tho - Director of the Consulting and Admissions Center, Saigon College of Tourism Technology, replied: Many candidates often make the mistake of only focusing on choosing a school and forgetting the most important factor: choosing a major that suits their passion and ability. A useful advice for you is to follow the formula: choose a career, choose a major, then choose a school.
If the university door does not open, you can absolutely find opportunities in the college system. At Saigon Tourism Technical College, the school is proud of its strength in training tourism services, technology, and engineering, which are groups of industries that are at the forefront of social development trends.
With 12 carefully selected majors, the school focuses on quality rather than quantity. This helps the school to accompany, support and equip students with specialized skills in the best way.
Mr. Nguyen Huu Tho
In the current general admission picture, most schools commit to having over 90% employment rate for their graduates. However, in reality, this figure is still quite low, and excellent graduates may still have to work in a different field or be unemployed.
According to experts, how will choosing to study at college give students an advantage when entering the labor market? If they have difficulty finding a job, will the school provide any support?
- Dr. Le Si Hai: Currently, many university and college graduates are still unemployed or have jobs that are not related to their major. Businesses today look at the actual contributions of employees to the business.
As mentioned, college students have up to 70% of their study time for practice, so they have an advantage when entering the labor market. Binh Minh Saigon College has more than 600 businesses in its affiliated system, from which students have many opportunities to practice, intern and find jobs.
The school commits that if a student is not highly evaluated by the business in terms of skills, the school will accept him/her for further training in knowledge, skills, etc.
- Ms. Nguyen Thi Mong Lanh : College or university students, if they do not make an effort, will still be unemployed as usual because when they graduate and enter the market, they need skills, attitudes, etc. When students are well equipped and have a good attitude towards work, it will be easy to find a job.
Saigon Polytechnic College has links with businesses to organize business semesters. Therefore, about 90% of students have jobs before receiving their diplomas. Every year, the school organizes a job fair to solve the 10% of unemployed students.
In addition to domestic enterprises, the school also has links with foreign enterprises so that students can work abroad if needed.
In the first 6 months of 2025, Ho Chi Minh City had more than 3,500 people receiving vocational training, an increase of 5% over the same period. Ho Chi Minh City forecasts recruitment needs in the third quarter of 2025 from 85,000 to 90,000 workers. These figures show that the current demand for human resources is very large, but the number of skilled workers is very small.
It is a reality that businesses have to continuously "order" training for college-level human resources. So which industries are currently "thirsty" for human resources?
- Ms. Nguyen Thi Mong Lanh, replied: This may be a "hot" industry at the moment, but in the next 1-2 years it will be outdated. The prerequisite is to choose the right industry that you love, that you are passionate about, and that is suitable for you. From there, you will have more job opportunities in the future.
Which industry is "thirsty" for human resources? In my opinion, the tourism industry has the potential to develop very well, with many related industries developing together such as restaurants, hotels, transportation services, beauty care, etc.
Currently, the school is training 4 related majors in the tourism field, including: service management, restaurant management, hotel management, and food processing.
In addition, the future trend industry group is the automotive engineering industry which also has a lot of development potential. Particularly in Ho Chi Minh City and other big cities are switching to green energy. Therefore, the automotive engineering industry, especially electric cars, also has many development opportunities with quite attractive salaries.
The tourism industry has the potential to develop very well.
- Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Chieu Anh, replied: Right from the beginning of career counseling, the school determined to help candidates understand themselves and choose the right major instead of just focusing on choosing "hot" majors.
To catch the eye of businesses, in addition to official training programs for students, the school also has hundreds of workshops and discussions with businesses. Through these activities, students expand their relationships and have more connections with businesses.
Studying a major does not only meet one job requirement. The school determines how to train you to have the necessary "skill set", so that when you graduate, you can expand your job group after graduation.
Right from the first year, students can intern with businesses.
Speakers are consulting at the program
Studying at college but having a high job opportunity after graduation
Many people think that graduating from college is just to become a worker, if you want to work in a high position, you have to go to university. According to experts, is this suitable for current needs? In fact, what abilities and skills do recruiting businesses today require graduates to have?
-Dr. Le Si Hai: We often hear that college graduates only become workers, university graduates become teachers. This is an incorrect concept.
College students will enter the market soon after graduating. Whether an individual becomes a manager or executive depends on their individual qualities. College education does not stop at what they have learned at school but must be studied regularly at all times and places.
At Binh Minh Saigon College, after graduation, students can transfer to Van Hien University, saving a lot of time and money.
Regarding startups, the school currently has a startup partner. This enterprise has sponsored the school with 10 billion VND to incubate startup ideas for students.
Businesses today evaluate candidates based on knowledge - skills - attitude. Attitude is the spirit of eagerness to learn new knowledge; responsibility - this is an issue that businesses are very concerned about... Businesses are also very concerned about creativity.
The weakness of students today is that their communication and teamwork skills are quite weak. Businesses also emphasize respect for differences.
Dr. Le Si Hai
-Mr. Nguyen Huu Tho: The school has received feedback from many businesses about the labor market's human resource needs. In particular, the demand for human resources with college degrees is greater than that of university degrees. Many businesses even prefer to accept college students rather than university students because the starting salary of university students is often higher, but the working ability and attitude of students are not necessarily better than those of college students.
As teachers mentioned, in addition to professional knowledge, businesses also highly value skills and attitudes.
When students graduate, businesses only see the university or college degree, what's important is the employee's work process.
Mr. Nguyen Huu Tho
The above are the advantages of choosing to study at college, however, at this stage, all candidates have completed their registration on the general admission system of the Ministry of Education and Training. From 5:00 p.m. on August 20, universities will announce the benchmark scores and the list of first-round admissions.
If a candidate wants to change his/her college admission wishes, is it possible? What should the candidate do at this time? In the worst case, if all of his/her wishes are rejected, then the candidate can apply for college admission. Is there still a chance?
Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Chieu Anh
- Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Chieu Anh replied: I affirm that you have every opportunity. During this time, if you want to change your wishes, then feel free to change your wishes.
This year, the Ministry of Education and Training has only encouraged colleges to use the common admission system, it is not yet mandatory. Therefore, schools are still recruiting directly on the school system.
Regarding scholarships, the school has many attractive policies, including 100% full scholarships. The specific scholarship level will depend on each major and the student's academic results. In particular, there are valuable scholarships such as the opportunity to participate in an international semester.
College admission requirements at this stage are very simple, just need to graduate from high school or college.
-Mr. Nguyen Huu Tho, replied: This year, the Ministry of Education and Training encourages colleges to participate in the general admission system. However, there are still many schools that conduct admission in parallel or proactively conduct admission using their own admission system. In particular, at this time, there are still many colleges accepting applications, but the later you register, the harder it is to get a quota for the major you want.
The entrance profile is quite easy, the requirement is high school graduation, no subject combination control.
Experts are consulting
It is known that at this time, some colleges have organized early admission sessions. If candidates submit their applications now, how will the school consider admission? During the course of study, if students feel that their chosen major is not suitable, can they change majors?
- Dr. Le Si Hai: Currently, colleges are accepting applications for admission. At the university level, the number of applicants is large but the number of college students is small.
When considering admission, if candidates do not pass the university entrance exam according to their wishes, they can still participate in the college entrance exam.
While studying in college, if students want to change majors, they can, but should limit it because this will waste time, effort and show that they are not well prepared.
-Ms. Nguyen Thi Mong Lanh: Most colleges have a fairly easy admission method, requiring only high school graduation.
Each college has its own characteristics, so when interested in a school, candidates need to learn deeply about the school and its majors.
At Saigon Polytechnic College, there are early admission courses. Not only do they receive preferential scholarships, students who enroll early also save time and choose better accommodation…
If candidates wait until after the university entrance exam results to consider college, do not hesitate, but boldly go to the desired college, study the desired profession to have a good future.
At Saigon Polytechnic College, students are allowed to change majors up to 2 times at the appropriate time. But as Dr. Hai shared, students should make good choices from the beginning to avoid wasting time and money.
70% of college time is practice
It is known that at this time, some colleges have organized early admission sessions. If candidates submit their applications now, how will the school consider admission? During the course of study, if students feel that their chosen major is not suitable, can they change majors?
Change majors up to 2 times, within the time period specified by the school. Sending questions about the program, many people wonder with the low tuition fee, do colleges support students with scholarships at the beginning of the year like universities? In addition, if you achieve good academic results, can you "win" more scholarships?
- Mr. Nguyen Huu Tho replied: At all levels of education the school is training, every level has scholarship support.
For college, those who register early can receive a scholarship of 30%, those with good academic results can receive a scholarship of 50-100%, applicable for semester 1.
Besides, during the study process, if the student has good results, he/she will definitely receive a scholarship, this cost will be directly deducted from the student's tuition fee.
- Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Chieu Anh , replied: People often think that if the tuition fee is too low, what will the quality be like? However, that is a wrong view, vocational education is completely different now. Besides the quality of training, students also enjoy many benefits no different from university education.
Currently, the school has a scholarship for elite students with good or excellent academic results but still choose to study at college.
Many years ago, the school had candidates who studied at specialized high schools, had the ability to pass the university entrance exam to a top university but still chose college.
In addition to school scholarships, there are also corporate scholarships. These can be cash scholarships or courses and training specifically for specific professions.
Job opportunities after college are still not inferior to university
The above are very detailed advices from experts, and surely many candidates have made new choices that suit their abilities and family economic conditions. Before resuming the talk show to move to the online consultation section, the experts will have a few words of encouragement to help you feel more secure with your choice.
-Dr. Le Si Hai: We need to change the mindset of having to study at university instead of junior college because in many countries around the world, many good students still study at junior college instead of university.
In Vietnam, the vocational education system will be better invested in the coming time.
Going to university or college is your decision, not someone else's wish.
Be proud that university is your number 1 choice. Then you will be comfortable, find joy and success.
- Ms. Nguyen Thi Mong Lanh: Find a suitable environment to accompany yourself. Candidates need to ask questions about who they are, what their interests are, and what they want to do in the future.
Don't choose a school or major just by hearing about it and seeing its glamour.
Parents need to listen to their children to help them orient their careers, and avoid forcing them to study in schools or majors that they do not want.
Have faith in yourself
Be sure to be passionate
Never give up.
- Mr. Nguyen Huu Tho: Seek information carefully and be confident in your decision.
- Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Chieu Anh : Choosing a college is not a situation but a trend. Be confident in choosing the school and major that best suits you.
Colleges are always ready to accompany students so that they can have stable careers, thereby enriching themselves and contributing to society.
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Source: https://nld.com.vn/sang-14-8-dien-ra-talkshow-chon-cao-dang-nhieu-loi-the-de-thanh-cong-196250813125151237.htm
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