Announcement | An International Educator in Vietnam

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60,000 Members & Counting!

21/04/2013

No, I’ m not referring to the number of subscribers to my humble blog but to members of VietAbroader (VA), a student-run, non-profit organization that empowers Vietnamese youth to contribute to the sustainable development of Vietnam. It was founded by a small group of Vietnamese students studying in the US at the time. Congratulations to them and the many young leaders they have inspired, who have transformed VA from an online forum to Vietnam’s most famous and highly respected student organization.

In addition to the online forum, VietAbroader is known for its annual summer study abroad conferences, VApedia, a wikipedia of information, advice and guidance covering admission, financial aid, life abroad, visas, and the VietAbroader Club, which initiates workshops and projects that help other high school students develop critical skills and make meaningful contributions to their local community.

According to SimilarWeb, which measures and analyzes web traffic, VA ranked 582,356 worldwide and 7,223 in Vietnam last month. Those statistics are wildly impressive when you consider that there over 600 million websites in the world and that Vietnam has an Internet penetration rate of about 35%.

Disclosure: I am proud to be one of two VietAbroader advisers, a position I have held almost since the organization’s founding. My company, Capstone Vietnam, has been a proud corporate sponsor of the VA’s summer study abroad conference the last few years.

MAA

Categories: Announcement
Tags: US-Vietnam educational exchange, vietabroader, Vietnamese students

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Welcome to Readers of the ICEF Monitor

15/04/2013

Welcome to An International Educator in Vietnam, which I launched in November 2009. If you look around my blog, you’ll soon find out why the subtitle is Information, Insights & (Occasionally) Intrigue. Chances are you’re here because you read my guest post, Why Vietnam? A Market Snapshot, the first of its kind to appear in the ICEF Monitor.

For information about Capstone Vietnam, of which I’m managing director, and some upcoming events, including our fall 2013 StudyUSA Higher Education and Community College Fairs, follow these links. The higher ed fairs will take place on September 15, 17 and 19 in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Danang and Hanoi, respectively, while the community colleges fairs will be held on September 29 and October 1, 3 and 5 in Haiphong, Hanoi, Danang and HCMC.

I look forward to hearing from you and meeting many of you at the NAFSA annual conference and other events. Please feel free to drop me a line, if you have any questions.

MAA

Categories: Announcement
Tags: academic globalization, academic partnerships, education reform, emerging economies, high school students, higher education fairs, international academic mobility, international student recruitment, rogue providers, US-Vietnam educational exchange, vietnamese higher education, Vietnamese students

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WES Webinar: An Overview of Education in Vietnam

05/04/2013

World Education Services (WES) is organizing a webinar on 7 June entitled An Overview of Education in Vietnam. WES is a New York City-based not-for-profit organization specializing in foreign credential evaluation and ”the leading source of international education intelligence,” according to its website.

In April 2011, representatives from over 60 U.S. colleges and universities participated in a week-long tour of Vietnam and Indonesia as part of the Obama administration’s initiative to multiply U.S. exports, including higher education, over the next five years. As Vietnam experiences a rapid economic growth, second only to China, college applications from Vietnam have appeared in admissions offices across the U.S. in increasing numbers. This webinar will feature an overview of the system of education, institution recognition, grading scales, and degree requirements, as well as demonstrate the WES methodology when authenticating academic credentials from Vietnam.

Date: Friday, June 7, 2013
Time: 2:00 – 3:00 PM EDT
Registration Cost: FREE
Contact: kre[AT]wes.org

There will be ample time afforded for discussion and questions. All registrants will receive a hyperlink to the recorded session, as well as a PDF version of the presentation and sample documents. Space is limited. If event capacity is reached, you may be added to a wait list.

Registration is limited to participants representing colleges or universities.

Categories: Announcement
Tags: US-Vietnam educational exchange, vietnam, vietnamese higher education

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International Student Recruitment: 2+2 Equals Success

09/03/2013

For those with an interest in international student recruitment and the 2+2 formula that has become so popular in recent years (2 years at a US community college + 2 years at a four-year college or university equals a bachelor’s degree), you might want to follow this blog and participate in the on- and offline discussion. It’s related to a general session entitled International Student Recruitment: 2+2 Equals Success (session abstract below) that will be offered at the 2013 annual conference of NAFSA: Association of International Educators in late May in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. Join me and my distinguished colleagues and co-presenters: Judy Irwin, Connect Globally, (chair), Maria Hesse, Arizona State University, and Ross Jennings, Green River Community College (WA).

Because the goal of most international students enrolled at U.S. community colleges is a bachelor’s degree, it has become imperative that two-year and four-year institutions engage in joint recruiting and marketing activities. This session focuses on the advantages and benefits, from institutional, student, and field perspectives, to promoting such a package.

Note: The above image is one that my company uses to promote the 2+2 concept in Vietnam. 2 years at a community college + 2 years at a university (or four-year college) = a diploma.

Categories: Announcement, Conferences
Tags: community colleges, international student recruitment, international students, transfer

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Protected: Resources for Visiting Colleagues

22/02/2013

Categories: Announcement, Updates
Tags: community colleges, higher education fairs, US-Vietnam educational exchange

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VIDEO CLIP — TRIỂN LÃM CAO ĐẲNG CỘNG ĐỒNG HOA KỲ – StudyUSA COMMUNITY COLLEGE FAIRS 3/2013

19/02/2013

Promotional video for Capstone Vietnam’s March 2013 StudyUSA Community College Fairs in Hanoi, Danang, Nha Trang & Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC). Enjoy!

Categories: Announcement, Events
Tags: capstone vietnam, community colleges, higher education fairs, Vietnamese students

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VietAbroader Summer 2013 “Passing of the Torch” Conferences

17/02/2013

Here’s a note I recently sent to US higher education colleagues about the 2013 VietAbroader summer study abroad conferences and related institutional sponsorship opportunities:

With staff & interns at the 2011 VAC in Hanoi.

Warm greetings from Vietnam! I am writing to let you know about an outstanding sponsorship opportunity: the 2013 VietAbroader (VA) Passing of the Torch Summer Study Abroad Conferences. This is a great chance to gain maximum exposure both at the conferences and in the media. I am honored to serve as one of two VietAbroader advisers, a position I have held almost since the founding of the organization in 2004. Capstone Vietnam has been a proud corporate sponsor in recent years.

VietAbroader is a student-run, nonprofit that provides Vietnamese students with training and guidance to encourage them to study abroad, primarily in the United States. The VA Study Abroad Conferences (VAC), the organization’s flagship program, were launched in 2005. I had the honor of speaking at the first Hanoi conference.Every year, I help VA’s leadership reach out to potential institutional sponsors. Why should US colleges and universities that welcome Vietnamese students to their campuses consider becoming a sponsor of the VAC? Because it’s one of the hottest and most widely publicized events of its kind, and will help you brand and market your school to a very targeted audience.

Then US Ambassador to Vietnam, Michael Michalak, and I after delivering introductory remarks at the 2009 VAC in Hanoi.

The conferences include morning seminars that provide prescreened attendees with general information about U.S. education, and fairs in the afternoon that are free and open to the public, where students and parents can meet face-to-face with students, alumni and official representatives of more than 80 top U.S. schools. This year, the conferences will be held on Saturday, July 20th in Ho Chi Minh City and Sunday, July 21st in Hanoi.

There is always a lot of interest in these events, so please let me know as soon as possible if you’d like to become an institutional sponsor. I’d be happy to send you PDF copies of the conference proposal and an overview of institutional benefits, as well as introduce you to the conference organizers. For your information, there are five levels of sponsorship, including Diamond (maximum of 3 sponsors), Platinum (4), Gold (5), Silver (N/A) and Bronze (N/A).

MAA

Note: To access information about the summer 2012 VACs, including sponsors and a list of fair participants, follow this link.

P.S.: When I joined the VietAbroader forum in March 2004, there were a few hundred members. As of 7 February, there were 56,520 (!).

Categories: Announcement, Conferences
Tags: high school students, higher education fairs, vietabroader, Vietnamese students

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Chúc mừng ngày lễ Tình Nhân! Happy Valentine’s Day 2013!

14/02/2013

The three grand essentials of happiness are: Something to do, someone to love, and something to hope for. (Alexander Chalmers)

Categories: Announcement, Events
Tags: happy valentine's day

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Study in the USA to Publish Vietnamese Language Magazine

12/02/2013

Study in the USA ® has announced that it will publish the first-ever Vietnamese language magazine for distribution in the coming year to students and parents in Vietnam. This special pocket-size edition will feature content especially appealing to Vietnamese students, including information and articles about four-year colleges and universities, community colleges, high school completion programs, the popular 2+2 option, visa issues, intensive English programs and the US education system. It will be distributed free of charge to attendees of IIE US Higher Education Fairs, StudyUSA Higher Education Fairs and Community College Fairs in Vietnam in Fall 2013 and Spring 2014.

This will be the sixth foreign language magazine published by Study in the USA, after Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese, and Arabic. Given that parents are the key decision-makers and that very few have a reading knowledge of English, it’s essential this information be made available in the local language.

Study in the USA was founded in 1978 by Peggy Printz as a response to Asian friends asking how their children should choose and apply to universities in North America. It was the first publication promoting U.S. programs to international students and continues to be the leader in its field. Today, Study in the USA operates with the mission of providing helpful information about U.S. higher education to international students and to connect them with reputable programs. Ten regional magazines, including a boarding schools & summer studies issue, are published by Study in the USA each year for students and their parents. More than 300,000 copies are distributed annually in 123 countries.

StudyUSA.com, which is an award-winning website, contains profiles of hundreds of quality American programs in fourteen languages. It features in-depth articles and current news stories about international students and the US educational system, including university admissions, scholarships and testing. It also provides online advisors who will answer admissions questions and offer personal assistance with unique situations. A company of principles, Study in the USA only accepts listings from schools, universities, institutions and programs that meet the highest standards of integrity and excellence in education and service to international students. With these practices, Study in the USA has helped millions of students find US programs.

A note to my US higher ed colleagues: For information about advertising opportunities and a chance to contribute to this new magazine, contact Travis Drageset, Marketing & Social Media, Study in the USA at (206) 622-2075 or marketing@studyusa.com. StudyUSA is also looking for high-quality student testimonial videos for its website.

Disclosure: Study in the USA is a client of Capstone Vietnam, of which I’m managing director.

Categories: Advertisement, Announcement
Tags: community colleges, educational advising, high school completion programs, higher education fairs, overseas study, US-Vietnam educational exchange

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Ten Most Popular Posts of 2012

01/01/2013

It’s that time of year again. First, I would like to wish you, dear reader, a New Year filled with happiness, good health, peace and prosperity. Secondly, I hope that you’ve been found something on these pages – bits and pieces of useful information, an insight, an idea – that is some benefit to you.

People visit An International Educator in Vietnam from a number of virtual locations. Some arrive here from a search engine while others visit on a regular basis looking for up-to-date information about Vietnam and, in particular, US-Vietnam educational exchange. Still others are “regulars” (i.e., subscribers).

Interestingly, five of the top 10 posts are from 2011 and 2010. (My biographical sketch is a permanent fixture.) A November 2010 post about student visas and US community colleges remains in 1^st place. In 2^nd place is a post that has nothing to do with Vietnam, education or US-Vietnam educational exchange but everything to do with love: a bilingual Valentine’s Day greeting. (This post received 2,124 visits! :-)) I’ve seen a steady stream of visits from people looking for information about US nationalism, hence the 8th place ranking of the post about nationalism, patriotism and global citizenship.

The posts that also made it into the top ten in 2011 are the ones about buying an accredited overseas Ph.D. (yes, most are serious) and about the AIESEC “Developing Leaders” conference, held in Hanoi in January 2011. (Hey, AIESEC! What’s up!)

And now, without further ado, here are the top 10 posts from 2012:

Of Student Visas & Community Colleges (14.11.10)

Chúc mừng ngày lễ Tình Nhân! Happy Valentine’s Day! (14.2.12)

where can i buy an accredited overseas phd? (24.1.11)

Education UK: Vietnam Country Partner Meeting (21.10.11)

In the Name of the Father, Son & Holy Spirit: Saving Souls Through English Teaching in Vietnam (21.4.11)

Hieu’s Story: The Next Chapter (4.1.12)

AIESEC “Developing Leaders” Conference (17.1.11)

Talking Nationalism, Patriotism and Global Citizenship with US Students in Vietnam (16.3.12)

Broward College in Vietnam (11.4.12)

Who Am I?/Tôi Là Ai?

MAA