Universities pay as high as businesses

TP - Reality requires universities to improve the quality of their teaching staff. Some higher education institutions have developed projects to attract high salaries of up to 200 million VND/month, and to employ good lecturers to improve the quality of training and scientific research.

New domestic attraction

Currently a research professor at the prestigious Ewha Womans University in Seoul (South Korea), Dr. Nguyen Van Nghia decided to leave Korea and return to work in Vietnam. According to Dr. Nghia's research, the project to attract and recruit excellent lecturers of Hanoi University of Science and Technology has a policy of recruiting young PhDs and potential researchers from within and outside the country with prestigious international publications and a clear research orientation for long-term work. Realizing that he is suitable for the requirements of this University, he decided to submit his application.

Lecturers at Hanoi University of Science and Technology work in the laboratory. Photo: DUY THANH

In February 2024, Dr. Nguyen Van Nghia officially became a member of the Polytechnic, accompanying the Faculty of Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Life Sciences . Not starting from zero, the project has breakthrough mechanisms on income, creating a professional working and research environment for talented lecturers to fully develop their abilities. For example, excellent lecturers will be sponsored by the school to carry out key topics, based on the candidate's proposal and approved by the advisory board. In addition, excellent lecturers will be supported by the school to enjoy preferential regimes and policies of the Government.

In February 2024, Dr. Nguyen Van Nghia officially became a "Polytechnician"

Dr. Nguyen Van Nghia, born in 1989, is one of the talented young faces who studied the integrated master's - doctoral program at Ulsan University (Korea). In 2020, he was honored to be in the top 20 outstanding young scientists nominated for the Golden Globe Award. At the age of over 30, he has an independent research fund from the National Research Foundation of Korea, has full-time graduate students working in the group and a modern, fully equipped laboratory.

Dr. Nghia hopes that in the next 5 years, he will build a strong research group with the core of students from Hanoi University of Science and Technology, expanding the network of connections with laboratories at home and abroad. “I do not want research to stop at ordinary international articles, but to aim for high-quality works, contributing to the “fingerprint” of Hanoi University of Science and Technology on the world science map. Moreover, I hope to work with colleagues and students to turn basic research into truly useful products, bringing practical value to life,” said Dr. Nguyen Van Nghia.

Great demand

Prof. Dr. Vu Van Yem, Vice President of Hanoi University of Science and Technology, said that in 2021, Hanoi University of Science and Technology implemented a project to attract talented and excellent young lecturers for the period 2021-2025. During this period, the school recruited 14 lecturers who met the requirements. In 2025, the University began implementing a project to attract and recruit talented young lecturers, experts, and leading scientists for the period 2025-2030 (HUST-Talent).

According to Professor Yem, currently, universities in Vietnam are facing a serious shortage of leading lecturers. The rate of lecturers with professorial qualifications is 0.89% in the whole system, associate professors 7.8%; the number of lecturers with doctoral qualifications according to 2024 data is 33%. While many young talents and good Vietnamese experts are working abroad, wishing to return but do not have enough conditions and suitable policies. Building a specific mechanism to attract and retain talent is an urgent requirement for university development in Vietnam.

Professor Vu Van Yem shared that the talents targeted in the project are, firstly, talented young PhDs who graduated from the world's top universities (top 200) or PhDs with outstanding scientific research achievements in the position of lecturer. The number of people needed to recruit is 137 (focusing mainly on strategic technology sectors such as artificial intelligence, semiconductors, energy technology, materials technology, biotechnology...).

Second are professors, associate professors, technology experts from enterprises, research institutes, start-ups with the positions of head of research laboratory, head of research group. The number of people to be attracted both domestically and internationally is 72. Third, scientists, leading experts, prestigious managers domestically and internationally in the positions of invited lecturers, experts, senior consultants, the number is 172 people.

According to Mr. Yem, the project participants will receive preferential salary in the first 3 years, be sponsored for research topics and supported to register to participate in international topics and projects; have a modern research environment; and have a development roadmap built...

In particular, they enjoy the health insurance policy of Hanoi University of Science and Technology, support for relatives, housing, administrative support... Salary can range from 40 - 150 million VND/month for young PhD lecturers, depending on ability and position; for research laboratory heads and research team leaders, they can receive a salary of 60 - 200 million VND/month.

Professor Yem hopes that by 2030, Hanoi University of Science and Technology will attract and recruit at least 300 talents from within and outside the country. Currently, the team of highly qualified staff and lecturers of Hanoi University of Science and Technology has nearly 900 PhDs, of which, over 300 are professors and associate professors.

According to Resolution 71 of the Politburo on breakthrough development of education and training, by 2030, Vietnam aims to recruit at least 2,000 excellent foreign lecturers for university education institutions.

Source: https://tienphong.vn/truong-dai-hoc-tra-luong-cao-nhu-doanh-nghiep-post1795390.tpo