On April 10, Viet Nam National University Ho Chi Minh City (VNU-HCM) organized a working session with guest speaker Dr. George Chiu - Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Associate Head of the Global Engineering Program and Partnership Relations at Purdue University, USA, and the representative of the U.S. Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Minh Tam - Vice Chancellor of VNU-HCM, presided over the working session.
Leaders of functional departments under VNU-HCM, representatives of the University's Executive Board, and leaders of Training Departments and Science Management Offices of member schools of VNU-HCM including the University of Technology, the University of Science, the University of Information Technology, and the International University, attended the working session.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Minh Tam mentioned that the number of students choosing to study science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields at universities in Vietnam has been decreasing over the years. VNU-HCM hopes that Dr. Chiu will share the experiences of the United States in general and Purdue University in particular in attracting students to study STEM fields, as well as improving the quality of STEM programs.
Dr. George Chiu believes that one of the solutions to increase the number of students studying STEM fields is to encourage girls who are passionate about STEM subjects from primary and secondary schools, so that they desire and confidently choose to study STEM disciplines at universities. Moreover, Purdue University has been quite successful in attracting female students to participate in STEM programs through several solutions.
For example, creating successful role models in STEM fields by widely sharing the success stories of accomplished female engineers and scientists; organizing STEM summer camps specifically for female students; developing scholarship programs for female students studying STEM fields. After more than 20 years of effort in implementing various solutions, the proportion of female students studying STEM fields at Purdue University has reached 45%.
In addition, Dr. Chiu proposes that universities should focus on improving the quality of STEM education through closely linking activities with businesses to regularly update the needs of enterprises. Consequently, improving training programs, creating more internship opportunities for students at businesses, enhancing research collaboration with enterprises, and providing opportunities for students to participate in these research projects with professors, postgraduate students, and university researchers from the early years of university.
Furthermore, Dr. Chiu suggests that universities can collaborate with reputable technology companies to develop short-term training programs and issue certificates using the micro-credential model in STEM fields to meet the needs of a segment of learners who do not want to fully enroll in degree programs. Dr. Chiu cited the successful micro-credential program in cybersecurity conducted by Purdue University in collaboration with Intel, which has attracted many learners.
On the same afternoon, Dr. George Chiu visited units of VNU-HCM, including the Institute of Nano Technology, the Center for Nano and Molecular Structure Materials Research, the Microelectronics and High-Frequency Systems Laboratory (Faculty of Electrical Engineering), the Biomedical Engineering Department, and the High-Frequency Laboratory of the Department of Electrical - Electronics (International University). He had conversations and exchanged experiences on scientific research activities with researchers at HCMUT.
He also had a talk with lecturers and students from STEM fields at the International University, where he shared useful information about the requirements of businesses regarding competencies, skills, and attitudes for graduates of STEM fields worldwide. He encouraged students to strive to enhance the necessary knowledge and skills to pursue careers in engineering and technology after graduation.
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Enhancing STEM education in Vietnam To implement the Joint Statement on Elevating Vietnam - U.S. Comprehensive Partnership to a Strategic Partnership signed by U.S. President Joe Biden and General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong in September 2023, the U.S. Embassy in Vietnam implemented the U.S. Speaker Program on "Enhancing STEM Education and Workforce Development in Science and Technology" in Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City from April 3-12, 2024. As part of this program, HCMUT coordinated with the U.S. Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City to organize a working session with Dr. George Chiu - Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Associate Head of the Global Engineering Program and Partnership Relations at Purdue University on April 10. Dr. George Chiu is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Associate Head of the Global Engineering Program and Partnership Relations at Purdue University. He was previously the Program Director at the U.S. National Science Foundation managing the National Robotics Initiative (NRI) for the Engineering Directorate. Before joining Purdue University, Dr. Chiu worked for HP and was a member of the development team for the HP Copyjet product line in the late 1990s. As an expert in electromechanical systems, control systems, and image processing systems, Dr. Chiu has been appointed as a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and the Imaging Science and Technology Association (IS&T). Dr. Chiu has helped establish research collaboration between academic institutions and commercial enterprises such as Hewlett-Packard, Xerox, and Samsung. |
Detailed Information: https://vnuhcm.edu.vn/tin-tuc_32343364/dien-gia-hoa-ky-chia-se-kinh-nghiem-ve-dao-tao-stem-va-hop-tac-dai-hoc-doanh-nghiep/353835393364.html
Hạ Băng - Media Collaborator, University of Information Technology
English version: Phan Huy Hoang
