On the afternoon of September 10, 2026, the University of Information Technology, Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City (UIT) and VNG officially launched the new season of SE116 – Practical Game Programming Skills Development. Following its first year of implementation, the course continues to bring industry experts, product development processes, and real-world challenges from the game industry directly into the classroom, further advancing the “Three-Party” collaboration model among University – Industry – Learners in technology education.

When the classroom moves closer to the real workplace

In SE116, students do more than learn game programming through lectures. They take part in the actual process of developing a product. From generating ideas and forming teams to assigning responsibilities, writing code, testing, receiving feedback, and refining their projects, every stage places students in situations that closely reflect how a real game development team operates.

The course combines the Game Development Fresher (GDF) program of ZPS – VNG with UIT’s game development curriculum. The University provides the academic foundation and organizes the learning process, while industry experts bring practical experience, product development workflows, and real-world requirements into the classroom. Students are at the center of the model, learning by doing and taking responsibility for the products their teams create.

This approach allows learning to go beyond simply acquiring knowledge. When a piece of code does not work as expected, a feature needs to be redesigned, or team members must agree on an implementation strategy, students are simultaneously developing problem-solving, teamwork, project management, and feedback skills – essential capabilities for their future careers.

University – Industry – Learners: working together in education

The program was attended by Dr. Nguyen Thai Binh Long, Deputy Head of the Department of External Relations and Project Development, VNU-HCM; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Duc Lung, Vice President and Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of UIT; Mr. Kelly Wong, Chief Executive Officer of VNG Group; Mr. Nguyen Vu Tien, Deputy Director of Online Game Development at VNG ZingPlay Game Studios and Program Director; together with representatives from VNG, UIT faculty members, and students.

At the event, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Duc Lung highlighted UIT’s direction of strengthening the connection between academic education and industry practice, thereby creating more opportunities for students to engage with real-world challenges, apply their professional knowledge, and gain valuable workplace experience while still at university.

From the industry side, VNG continues to support SE116 through a team of experts who participate directly in the program. By bringing experience from real game development projects into the classroom, these experts help students understand not only how a game product is created, but also the requirements, professional standards, and collaborative workflows of a technology company.

A distinctive feature of the “Three-Party” model is that students are not merely the final beneficiaries. They actively participate in creating products, asking questions, testing solutions, receiving feedback, and strengthening their capabilities through each project. In this way, collaboration between the University and industry is transformed into tangible learning experiences that students can access directly in the classroom.

From learners to mentors for the next generation

This year’s SE116 also introduces another meaningful continuation: students who completed the course in the previous season are returning as mentors to support the next cohort.

The experiences they gained while developing their own projects – from debugging code and revising solutions to coordinating responsibilities among team members – now become practical insights that can be shared with new learners.

The return of former students as mentors also creates a cycle of knowledge sharing within the student community. Knowledge and experience do not end with a single semester; they continue to be shared, enriched, and passed on from one generation of students to the next.

As a result, current students can learn not only from faculty members and industry experts but also from mentors who have recently gone through the same journey they are now beginning.

Bringing industry into the classroom, bringing students closer to their careers

In technology, the gap between classroom knowledge and market requirements can change rapidly. Deeper industry involvement in education therefore creates opportunities for curricula to stay connected with real-world practice while helping students identify the skills and capabilities they need to develop early in their academic journey.

SE116 demonstrates how UIT is expanding its industry-integrated education model. Rather than waiting until an internship to experience a professional working environment, students can engage with part of the product development process within a formal course, work alongside industry experts, and receive feedback on the products they build themselves.

A completed game project, therefore, is more than a final course outcome. The journey of creating it is equally important. Throughout that process, students gain a clearer understanding of their own capabilities, identify areas where they still need to improve, and become more familiar with the real-world expectations of the careers they may pursue after graduation.

The continuation of SE116 in the 2026–2027 academic year also illustrates how university–industry collaboration can extend beyond company visits, seminars, or recruitment activities. When industry professionals participate directly in education, faculty members connect academic knowledge with practice, and students create real products themselves, the classroom becomes a meeting point for knowledge, technology, and the labor market.

This is also one of the directions UIT continues to advance to create more opportunities for students to learn through practice, gain professional experience, and become better prepared for careers in the technology industry.