Strengthening the partnership of university and enterprises in ha noi, vietnam the case of university of labour and social affairs (ULSA)

STRENGTHENING THE PARTNERSHIP OF UNIVERSITY AND
ENTERPRISES IN HA NOI, VIET NAM: THE CASE OF ULSA

AN ABSTRACT

RESEARCH PAPER PRESENTED TO
THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
SOUTHERN LUZON STATE UNIVERSITY, LUCBAN, QUEZON, PHILIPPINES
IN COLLABORATION WITH
THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY, SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DOCTORAL DEGREE
IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

By
NGUYEN XUAN HUONG - RICARDO

July, 2013


CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION
In the Strategy for Education development of Vietnam in 2011-2020, the
Government exposed seven limitations in the current educational system of Vietnam.
This showed that Vietnamese educational quality is low, contents are heavily
theoretical, and universities have not changed much into training based on demands of
the society (Vietnamese Government, 2012, pp. 4-5). In this Strategy, developmental
goal for vocational and university training is that “raising the training quality to meet
labour demands for the socio-economic development…” (Vietnamese Government,
2012, p. 9). To achieve this goal, Vietnamese universities need to fulfill many
activities for improving their training programs, of which, creating and maintaining a

close partnership with employers is an important one.
University of Labour and Social affairs (ULSA) is a state university under the
control of the Ministry of Labour, Invalids, and Social affairs of Vietnam. It has four
training programs at the bachelor level1. They are Human resource management,
Accounting, Insurance, and Social work. Annually, about two thousand students
graduate from the university. The statistical data of the university show that only
about 70% of graduated students can find jobs within a year since the point they
receive the bachelor degree, and of which, less than 50% can find jobs in the fields
they studied. Most graduates, including those having jobs in their studying fields,
gave the feedback that many topics they had studied were unuseful for their work and
they needed to be retrained when starting their jobs. This shows that current training
programs of the university are somewhat inappropriate with demands of labour
markets. There are some reasons for this problem but the main one is there is almost
no participation of employers in designing training programs of ULSA. The

1

The university will start the fifth program (business administration) in October, 2013.

2


university does not have any network of cooperating employers. When the university
designing or adjusting training programs, normally, there were only one or two
representatives of employers.
Realizing the importance of the ULSA’s partnership with employers, I choose
the topic “Strengthening the Partnership of University and Enterprises in Ha Noi,
Viet Nam: The Case of ULSA” for my dissertation topic.
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
The research problem in this dissertation can be stated as follow:

ULSA’s weak partnership with enterprises leads to the incompatibility
between what their graduates have studied and what they need for job.
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
The main objective of this study is to develop strategies that will strengthen
the partnership of ULSA and enterprises in Hanoi that will improve the training
quality provided by the university. Specifically, the study sought to:
•

Characterize and analyze the internal and external factors affecting the

quality of trainings provided by ULSA
•

Identify, define and analyze the mismatch of the training courses provided

by ULSA with what is needed by the industries
•

To identify approaches that will increase the training quality provided by

ULSA

CHAPTER II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
1.

EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH OF UNIVERSITY – ENTERPRISE
RELATIONSHIP
After reviewing some local and foreign literature, some brief conclusions can

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be drawn out as follows:
•

The importance of university-enterprise relationship has been realized in

many countries, including Vietnam. Universities and enterprises can gain many
benefits if they have close relationships with each others.
•

University-enterprise cooperation have often been examined in the science

and technological field. It is shown that universities play a very important role in
technological innovations for enterprises
•

Very few researches have been done about university-enterprise linkages

in the social field, especially, in Vietnam.
•

The government play an very important role in promoting university-

enterprise partnership.
•

The university-enterprise partnership can be long-term only if both parties

can gain hamonious benefits from the parnership.

•

In order to create the most appropriate university-enterprise partnership,

each university should consider about its specific conditions about training fields,
financial status… etc., as well as its local and national environment.
2.

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
University-enterprise relationship can be thought as a special kind of provider-

customer relationship (CRM). However, up to now, there has been no theory for this
kind of relationship. Thus, we will examine some basic contents of customer
relationship management as the theoretical framework of the study.
CRM is an integrated approach to identifying, acquiring, and retaining
customers. By enabling organizations to manage and coordinate customer interactions
across multiple channels, departments, lines of business, and geographies, CRM helps
organizations maximize the value of every customer interaction and drive superior

4


corporate performance. The primary goal of CRM is to improve long-term growth and
profitability through a better understanding of customer behaviour. According to
Buttle (2009), there are four types of CRM and each has its own dominant
characteristics, namely, Strategic, Operational, Analytical, and Collaborative CRM.
3.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
External factors

Government
policies
affecting
university-enterprise relationship

Training activities
- Improving curriculum
- CEOs of enterprises give lectures
- Participating in colloquium defense
- Practical activities
- Seminars
- Scholarship
- Facilities
- Job placement for graduates

ULSA

Enterprises
Proposed benefits
- Advices (if any)
- Position in the Website
- Acknowledgement of the contribution
- Sending card on special occasions
- (small) Payment
- Inform of new policies
- Proposals to Authorities for preferred
policies for enterprises

Internal factors
- Prestige

- Operational features
- Recognition and experience

5


The conceptual framework shows that enterprises can participate in many
training activities to help ULSA to improve it training quality. Enterprises can help
ULSA by giving comments on its training curriculums, giving lectures to its students,
etc. In order to attract enterprises participate in its training program, the university
will offer some preferred policies to enterprises. Of these policies, the most important
one is that the university desires to receive helps and respect all helps from
enterprises. Moreover, the university will acknowledge the contribution of enterprises
by presenting their name in its website and sending greeting cards to them on special
occasions.

CHAPTER III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
1.

RESEARCH DESIGN
We will follow a comparative research design to find out whether the

university and enterprises have some mutual interests to cooperate with each other
and what each side want to receive from the other. This type of research design is
chosen and appropriate in this dissertation because the university has not undertaken
any studies about this topic and we can undertake a survey of only a small number of
enterprises.
In order to achieve the research objectives, this study will use both
quantitative method and qualitative methods. The qualitative method is use mainly in
analyzing prevailing policies and proposing recommendations. The quantitative

method is use mainly in analyzing surveyed data.
2.

POPULATION AND SAMPLING DESIGN
There are two types of subject. The first subject includes enterprises. This

group will be surveyed to find out whether they are willing to participate in training

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activities in ULSA, in which activities they can participate, what they want to receive
in return, and etc. The second group includes graduated students. They will be
surveyed to collect information about their job, their lacked skills and knowledge after
graduation, their recommendations for improving training quality of ULSA, and etc.
These two populations contain a huge number of respondents. However, to
survey these numbers of respondents will need a long time and many other resources.
For the scope and design of this study, we will survey only 100 CEOs and 100
graduated students. The sample of the study is shown in table below.
Population and sample of the study

3.

Subject

Sample

CEOs of enterprises

100

Graduated students

100

RESEARCH INSTRUMENT
The questionnaires for CEOs will have three parts. The first part including

questions for collecting general information about the CEOs and its enterprise, such
as name, address, operational field of the enterprise, age, sex, and educational degree
of the CEOs. The second part will be the most important one in the questionnaire. It
will focus on collecting information about whether enterprises are willingness to
cooperate with ULSA in training activities, which areas they can and want to
cooperate, and which benefits they hope to receive from the cooperation. The third
part is designed for collecting suggestions to improve the relationship between ULSA
and enterprises.
The questionnaires for graduated students will also have three parts. The first
part including questions for collecting general information about the student and its
current job (name, address, operational field of his/her enterprise, age, sex, the

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studying field, current position of the student). The second part will focus on
collecting information about the student’s job history, difficulties they faced in
finding jobs, reasons for these difficulties, unsuitability (if any) between trained skills/
knowledge and work in reality, etc. The third part includes questions for collecting
suggestions/ proposals from graduated students to ULSA for improve its training
quality through the partnership with enterprises.
4.

DATA GATHERING PROCEDURE
•

After finishing all preparing activities (such as getting the final permission

from SLSU and TNU for approving the proposal of research, approvals from
supervisors about questionnaires), author of this study will send the questionnaire for
CEOs and detailed instruction to the Association of enterprises of Hanoi. Then, the
Association will conduct the survey and send complete questionnaire sheets back to
the author.
•

Basing on the database of graduated students stored in ULSA, the author

will choose randomly three classes, graduated in 2009, 2010, and 2011, respectively.
Then, each student in these classes will be contacted by phones for agreement to
participate in the survey. After that, the questionnaire for graduated students and
detailed instruction will be sent by email to agreed students. The students will send
back complete questionnaire sheets back to the author.
5.

DATA PROCESSING METHOD
•

Returned questionnaires will be checked and cleaned by the author

•

Raw data will be analyzed by three computer softwares, including Excel,

SPSS, and Stata.
•

Data will be analyzed descriptively only because the research design is

comparative.

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•

Results are presented in tables and charts. Each result will be presented in

both frequency and percentage.

CHAPTER IV.
PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA
1.

JOB HISTORY OF GRADUATED STUDENTS
Of all surveyed students, only 8 students (about 5.5%) are currently

unemployed and all of them studied accounting. Reasons why only accounting
students were unemployed may be that they graduated in the late of 2011 when the
economic crisis started in the world and there were too many universities providing
training programmes in accounting in Vietnam. On the side of unemployed graduates,
they gave several reasons for being unemployed. Seven of eight students (87.5%) said
that they had applied but were not employed because their trained knowledge and

skills were not fit for jobs; three fourths said that enterprises (employers) do not want
to employ bachelors graduated from ULSA because the university has low reputation;
the same number said that enterprises (employers) have demand to employ bachelors
in their training field but they do not want to work because of low salary. In addition,
students pointed out some other reasons, such as they were employed but then were
fired because their trained knowledge and skills were not fit for jobs. All other
reasons were also related to inappropriate knowledge/ skills and low image.
In general, about two thirds of graduated students have current job fit with
their training fields and about 8% have current jobs unrelated to their training fields.
Other students have current jobs close to their training fields. This does not mean it is
easy for graduated students to find jobs fit with their training fields and with
satisfactory payments. Nearly 40% of students got their first jobs in more than 3

9


months since graduation and about 20% had changed their jobs. Of those who had
changed their job, about two thirds said that it were because previous jobs did not fit
with training field so that they gave up in order to find another one that fit with
training field and about one fourth said that they quit previous jobs because of low
salaries. For those students who had not changed jobs, it was not that they were
satisfied with their current jobs. Many students were afraid that they could not find
new jobs if they quit their current ones.
2.

EXPERIENCES OF ENTERPRISES WITH RELATION TO ULSA
In term labour employment, only 9.4% of surveyed enterprises are currently

employing bachelors graduated from ULSA. Percentages of large enterprises and
medium enterprises currently employ graduates of the university are quite the same, at

about 11.5% while the percentage of small medium enterprises is only 6.38%. On the
side of enterprises, surveyed CEOs exposed some reasons for not employing
bachelors graduated from ULSA.
The most important reason that enterprises did not employ bachelors
graduated from the university, which was given by more than 50% of surveyed CEOs,
was that their enterprises had no demand for labour in those three training fields
provided by ULSA. There are too many universities in Vietnam providing training
programmes in fields very similar to those by ULSA and total training capacity
exceeds demand of labour markets.
Three fourths of surveyed students said that enterprises do not want to employ
bachelors graduated from ULSA because the university has low reputation. On the
side of CEOs, 26.42% said that their enterprises had no information about ULSA so
that they did not want to employ bachelors graduated from the university. Certainly,
enterprises will employ graduates from more reputable universities if they study in the

10


same training field.
The third reason given by surveyed CEOs relating to inappropriate knowledge
and skills of students (low training quality). Of those enterprises currently not
employing bachelors graduated from ULSA, some have had applicant from the
university and could not employ them or employed but then fired them because their
trained knowledge and skills were not fit for jobs.
3.

WORKING WEAKNESSES OF STUDENTS
More than 90% of CEOs said that graduated students lack practical knowledge

and skills needed for their jobs. The same percentage said that students have low

ability in using foreign languages (English) for their jobs. On the side of graduated
students, the most weakness which nearly all students thought they had to face was
their low ability in using foreign languages. The other weakness that most (92.47%)
students faced related to their lack of practical knowledge and skills.
Many surveyed CEOs pointed out three other weaknesses relating to working
capacity of bachelors graduated from ULSA with percentages at about 70-80%. These
include the lack of supplemental knowledge and skills, low ability in using computer
and softwares, and low ability in self-control, independent and creative working.
Although most CEOs thought that students faced these weaknesses, most students did
not think so. Only 32.19% of graduated students said that they have low ability in
self-control, independent and creative working, 20.55% said that they lacked
supplemental knowledge and skills, and less than 10% agreed that they had low
ability in using computer and softwares.
4.

POTENTIAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR ULSA IN COOPERATION WITH
ENTERPRISES
Surveyed CEOs exposed many activities that their enterprises could be able to

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cooperate with universities. These activities lay at all three areas, namely training,
services, and research. In general, we can say that there many potential opportunities
that universities can take advantages of the cooperation with enterprises. Surveyed
CEOs said that, if ULSA has appropriate cooperating mechanism/ policies, their
enterprises will be cooperate with the university in many activities.
With respect to cooperation in training, enterprises are willing to participate in
a lot of activities. More than 90% of CEOs agreed to admit students to fulfill their
long-time and short-time practical courses at their work or to share practical

information and vocational guidance to students. About 75-84% of surveyed CEOs
said that they could give comments or participate in designing curricula, give lectures,
supervise and give marks to students’ final theses, or sign contract with the university
to provide short-time training courses in technology, management, etc. to their staffs.
Two thirds of them said that they could place orders to employ ULSA’s graduated
students. Only about 20% of CEOs are willing to give machineries, facilities to the
university or scholarships to its students. In term services, there is only one activity
that more than 50% of surveyed enterprises agree to cooperate with ULSA. The
activity is “the university provides consultants about technology and management to
enterprises”. Other activities, such as “the university introduces new technology to
enterprises” or “enterprises sell their researching results to the university” were
chosen by less than one fourth of CEOs.
For cooperation in research, 62.39% enterprises can sign contract with the
university to undertake research projects for them while only 23.08% are willing to
mutually participate in or contribute resources to fulfill research projects. Probably,
this is because enterprises have little experience in research and, with limited
resources, they do not want to participate in risky activities. In addition, 53.85% of

12


CEOs said that they are willing to mutually participate in scientific-technological
forums, clubs with the university and 47.86% can provide supports for researching
activities of the university.
We can see that all activities that enterprises want to cooperate with ULSA are
“traditional”. They are frequently willing to cooperate with the university in activities
that need few resources or are easy to do. The main reason is that they have little
information about the university, especially its capacity. As a result, it is easy to
understand why they are careful with participating in cooperating activities with
ULSA. Another reason is probably that enterprises do not have enough resources for

their business, and thus they do not want to participate in activities which can not
provide any immediate benefits.
5.

SOLUTIONS

FOR

STRENGTHENING

THE

COOPERATION

BETWEEN ULSA AND ENTERPRISES
5.1. Ensure harmonious benefits for enterprises
In this survey, 86.32% of CEOs said that, in order to encourage them to
cooperate with ULSA, the university should buy their products, allow free
advertisement of enterprises in its website or place panels at the university. Certainly,
ULSA can not buy products of all cooperating enterprises. However, the university
can allow many enterprises to advertise in its website.
Many enterprises, especially small ones, can not catch up with updated legal
documents. 82.91% of CEOs want ULSA to update and provide free of charge
(mainly by Internet) legal documents relating to enterprise. It is impossible for the
university to update and provide all regulations related to enterprises. However,
ULSA can provide them update regulations in its training fields because the
university also needs these regulations for its training programmes.

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In order to encourage enterprises to fulfill activities that help ULSA free of
charge, the university needs to provide them some other activities free of charge.
80.34% of surveyed CEOs agreed that their enterprises can admit ULSA’s students to
fulfill their practical courses or they can share information about labour markets free
of charge if the university provides free consultancies or remission of charge for some
cooperating activities. To solve the dilemma between “encouraging enterprises to
cooperate” and “raising benefits”, ULSA should consider which services it can
provide free of charge or how high remission rates are.
Another solution chosen by two thirds of CEOs is that the university
contributes to or participates in sporting, cultural activities in enterprises. Visiting and
playing together sometimes are more effective than payment. With about twenty
thousands students, it is very easy for ULSA to implement this solution. This will also
provide opportunities for students to accustom to the working environment in the
reality.
Two third of CEOs want to receive adequate payments for their personal
participation in giving lectures at the university. Although most CEOs give lectures to
students not for money, it is needed to cover all of their costs, including transportation
and preparation. Thus, ULSA should double its current compensation for invited
lecturers (CEOs). With respect to contribution by ULSA for activities of students at
work, only 45.30% CEOs said that the university needs to make payments and 6.84%
said that the university needs to contribute facility.
Opinions of graduated students about solutions for ensuring harmonious
benefits for enterprises in the cooperation with ULSA are very similar to those given
by CEOs. About 90% of graduated students thought that ULSA should give adequate
payments when CEOs give lectures at the university; 87.07% said that the university

14

should provide free consultancies or remission of charge for some cooperating
activities; 72.79% of them thought that the university should contribute to or
participate in sporting, cultural activities in enterprises; 54.42% said that ULSA
should update and provide free of charge legal documents relating to enterprise.
Students also believe that the contribution by ULSA for activities of its students at
work is not important (with percentages at less than 15%).
5.2. Acknowledge the contribution by enterprises
If ULSA can not contribute much monetary payments to enterprises, it can
promote its cooperation with them by expressing its acknowledgement of their
contribution. On overall, 88% of CEOs want the university to make a list of
cooperating enterprises and upload it to the website; 79% CEOs want the university to
write articles about important cooperating events in the website. These activities will
help to popularize their images to the public.
When people offering suggestions, they want their suggestions to be
considered. This consideration should be implemented in the reality. Thus, about 60%
of CEOs said that the university should send back to them those documents that they
had commented.
In some special occasions, such as birthday of CEOs, the university should
send flowers/ cards to them. This shows that the university remembers their
distribution and wants them to cooperate more with it. In this sample, about 82% of
CEOs want the university implement this activity. Students also share very similar
opinions. Nearly all of surveyed graduates think that ULSA should realize these four
activities.
5.3. Supplementary solutions
Many CEOs had very little information about ULSA. About 80% of CEOs

15


said that ULSA should send its information to them. Moreover, in order to create and

maintain partnership with enterprises, ULSA should sign cooperating commitments/
agreements with enterprises. About two thirds of CEOs suggested that they want their
cooperation with the university to be “formal and long-term” by signing principled
agreements with each other. On the side of students, more than 90% of them agreed
that the university should implement these two supplementary solutions.

CHAPTER V.
SUMMARY, FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
1.

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
•

Low quality of current training programmes

According to surveyed CEOs of enterprises and graduated students, the
working competence of ULSA’s graduates is quite low. The reason is that there is a
gap between what students have been trained in the university and what they need for
their work in the reality.
The training gap appears in some different aspects. They include the lack of
practical knowledge and skills, the lack of supplemental knowledge and skills, low
ability in using computer and softwares, low ability in using foreign languages, which
are needed for fulfilling their jobs, and low ability in self-control, independent, and
creative working. As a result, it is difficult for students to find jobs with adequate
salaries.
•

Little experience in cooperation with enterprises

Until now, ULSA does not have formal relationship with any enterprises.

Thus, there have been very few activities of the university which have the
participation of enterprises, as well as activities that the university undertook for

16


enterprises. Previous and current training programmes were designed chiefly by the
university itself.
•

Potential opportunities for strengthening partnership with enterprises

It is found that enterprises can be able and willing to cooperate with ULSA in
many activities although most of them have very little experience in the cooperation
with universities. These activities can be classified into three groups, namely, training,
services and research.
With respect to cooperation in training, (CEOs of) most enterprises can
participate in the training process, such as designing curricula or giving lectures, but
few of them want to contribute (free of charge) scholarships or facilities to the
university. Moreover, most of enterprises agree to sign contract with ULSA to
provide short-time training courses to their staffs.
In term of services, about two third of enterprises want to sign contract with
the university to provide consultants about technology and management. However,
less than 50% of enterprises want to receive other services provided by the university,
such as evaluating their production or introducing, mediating new technology to their
enterprises. This is probably because they do not believe in the quality of these
services. On the other hand, very few enterprises can sell their researching results to
the university because they do not devote much of their resource for R&D that
universities can apply.
For cooperation in research, more than half of enterprises agree to sign

contract with the university to undertake research projects for them or mutually
participate with the university in scientific-technological forums, clubs. However,
only about one fourth of enterprises want to participate in or contribute resources to
fulfill research projects mutually with the university.

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•

Proposed solutions by enterprises for strengthening their partnership

with ULSA
According to CEOs of enterprises, they will create and maintain their
partnership with ULSA if the university offers appropriate policies. These policies
include those for ensuring harmonious benefits for enterprises in such a way that can
create an “equal and mutually beneficial” cooperation, those acknowledging the
cooperation/ distribution from enterprises, and some supplementary activities.
However, CEOs of most enterprises did not require much financial or physical
distribution from the university.
•

Policy

of

Government

for

promoting

university-enterprise

cooperation
Government policies are the external environment that can promote or hinder
the university-enterprise partnership. Although the central Government of Vietnam
realized the significance of university-enterprise relationship on the training quality, it
has promulgated only “broad” Law, Directions, and Strategies to promote the
university-enterprise relationship. However, very few “specific” policies have been
issued and implemented to promote the cooperation between universities and
enterprises. It can be said that, currently, there are not enough policies to create
favourable conditions for promoting university-enterprise partnership in Vietnam.
2.

CONCLUSION
First, ULSA should design and implemented activities for raising its training

quality. These activities need to focus on improving training curricula as well as
changing teaching methods.
Second, the university should devote more of its resources to create and
strengthen the partnership with enterprises.

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Third, there are many potential opportunities for ULSA to create and
strengthen its partnership with enterprises. Its partnership with enterprises can be
created in training, services and research.
Fourth, in order to realize potential opportunities, the university should

implement a set of suitable policies/ solutions. These policies need to ensure
harmonious benefits for enterprises in such a way that can create an “equal and
mutually beneficial” cooperation, acknowledge the cooperation/ distribution from
enterprises.
Fifth, with respect to benefits gaining from the partnership with ULSA, most
of benefits are non-financial items.
Six, two thirds of surveyed enterprises agreed to place orders to employ
graduated students of ULSA if the university has the partnership with them.
Last, ULSA should cooperate with the Vietnam Network of Economic
Universities to design policies for promoting university-enterprise cooperation in
Vietnam. Then, the Network will submit these proposed policies to MOET and other
relevant authorities.
3.

RECOMMENDATION

3.1. Improving training curricula and changing teaching methods
With respect to training curricula, ULSA should add more practical subjects.
In order to choose most needed and appropriate practical subjects, ULSA should
collect information about labour markets, both from comments of enterprises and
from feedback of former students. Training curricula of the university should contain
some “soft” subjects as “special/ practical” topics. These topics can be changed
annually to catch up with changes in labour markets. To keep training curricula
flexible but stable, special topics should occupy less than 10% of all subjects.

19


To collect feedbacks from graduated students, ULSA should set up a network
or forum of former students in its website. A similar forum can also set up for

collecting information from enterprises.
In term of teaching methods, the university should apply the “credit” model in
which students are regarded as the “center” of the training process. In addition, in
every subject, teaching methods also need to be changed from “transferring
knowledge in one way from lectures to students” into “two-way discussion”. Students
will give more time for preparation and less time in their class. Lecturers will play
mainly the role as supervisors/ directors in discussion by students. Moreover, the
method of assessment should be diversified and “continual”. Final mark of every
subject should contain at less four components, namely, attendance, participation/
activeness, mid-term exam, and final exam. Beside that, instead of written exams for
all subjects, the university should apply other assessment methods, such as oral
exams, assignments or presentation.
In order to improve the ability of students in using foreign languages (English)
for their work the university should change the teaching way of this subject. Each
class should include less than 30 students. Each class should be organized for students
with the same “English” levels. In addition, ULSA should buy more textbooks,
newspapers written in English for students. The university can implement some other
solutions, such as organizing English clubs for students, teaching some subjects in
English for students, or giving “rewarded” marks for theses or assignments written in
English.
With respect to supplemental skills, such as ability to use computer/ softwares,
ability in self-control, independent and creative working, ULSA should design some
new “optional” subjects that students can choose, such as computer softwares for

20


presentation, communicating skills, etc. However, the better way is to change
teaching methods to provide students opportunities for practising these needed skills.
Proposed solutions can be to give students more team-work exercises spend more

time for presentation by students, etc. The university can also design evening classes
for students to improve these skills.
In term of changing teaching methods, the university should propagandize the
importance of new teaching methods for all of its lecturers. Then, ULSA should sign
contracts with the Hanoi Teachers’ University to provide short-time training courses
about modern teaching methods for them.
3.2. Devoting more resources to create and maintain the partnership with
enterprises
ULSA should set up a department specializing in cooperation with enterprises.
This department will be in charge of all activities to create and maintain partnership
with enterprises, such as making a database of cooperating enterprises, receiving
information, signing cooperating contracts or sending postcard to enterprises on
special occasions. The department will be also responsible for collecting feedbacks
from former students.
In term of financial expenditure, ULSA should upgrade its website, hire a
better internet line, and buy more host computers. Moreover, the university should
reserve an adequate annual budget (maybe 1% of its total budgets) for remaining and
strengthening the partnership with enterprises. This budget will be spent on gifts for
enterprises, co-organizing entertainment activities, etc.
3.3. Ensuring harmonious cooperating benefits for enterprises
•

ULSA should create a list of services/ consultancies that it can provide to

enterprises. For each service, there will be some different levels of free or remission

21


of charge offered to enterprises in accordance with their cooperating “levels”. For

those enterprises that have permanent partnership (or signed formal cooperating
contracts) with ULSA, rates of remission should be higher provided. The university
also needs to present requirements for enterprises if they want to receive different
levels of remission.
•

ULSA should provide (through internet) free of charge related legal

documents to enterprise. For enterprises with a permanent partnership, ULSA should
create a database of emails of cooperating enterprises and send these documents to
them. These documents will also be uploaded to the forum in its website for the
reference of other enterprises.
•

For enterprises with a permanent partnership, ULSA should buy their

products (certainly, if demanded and at acceptable prices). The university can also
allow free (or at remission of charge) advertisement of enterprises in the website or
panels at the university.
•

For enterprises with a permanent partnership, ULSA should send delegates

to or participate in sporting, cultural activities in enterprises or invite enterprises to
participate in its entertainment activities.
3.4. Acknowledge the contribution by enterprises
•

Make a list of cooperating enterprises and upload it to the website.

•

Write articles about important cooperating events in the website. These

activities will help to popularize images of cooperating enterprises to the public.
•

Send back to enterprises those documents that they had commented. For

those comments which were not considered, ULSA should give reasons.
•

Send gifts, flowers or postcards to cooperating enterprises in special

occasions, such as birthday of CEOs. These activities will show that the university

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remembers their distribution and want them to cooperate more with them, and they
will remind enterprises that they have been cooperating with the university.
3.5. Create “formal” partnership with enterprises
To encourage enterprises to remain permanent partnership, ULSA should
design a “general cooperating agreement” and sign it with enterprises. These
agreement needs to have detailed description about obligations as well as benefits of
both parties. In addition, the university should design a manual/ leaflet and send it to
enterprises to popularize the image of ULSA and its willingness to cooperate with
enterprises.
3.6. Cooperate with other universities for strengthening university-enterprise
cooperation

•

ULSA should cooperate with the Vietnam Network of Economic

Universities to design policies for promoting university-enterprise and the Network
will submit these proposed policies to MOET and other relevant authorities. Proposed
policies need to be developed into two groups, namely policies to encourage each
enterprise to cooperate with universities and policies to promote the cooperation
between (group of) universities and (group of) enterprises, such as organizing a
national, regional or professional network/ forum of university-enterprise cooperation.
•

ULSA should cooperate with other universities, especially those in the

Vietnam Network of Economic Universities, in implementing university-enterprise
activities, such as sharing information about labour markets, providing consultancies,
organizing short-time training courses for enterprises, etc.
4.

LIMITATION AND FURTHER STUDY
•

The research period is quite short (only three years) because the first

university students graduated from ULSA in 2009.

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•

ULSA has only training programmes in social fields. Thus, results can be

most useful for universities having training programmes in the same fields. Other
universities can use these results only as reference.
•

Survey data are collected only about enterprises in Hanoi. Thus, results

might not have high applicable powers for universities in some “poor” provinces
where the number of enterprises is low, as well as, their cooperating capacity is not
developed.
•

Proposed solutions/ policies in this dissertation are quite “general”. In

order to strengthen its partnership with enterprises, ULSA should undertake a survey
to collect detailed information about cooperating demands of enterprises, as well as
there expectation from the cooperation. Then, the university need to design a set of
detailed activities that it can cooperate with enterprises, as well as, benefits that
enterprises can receive from the partnership with ULSA. These documents should be
post in its website and sent to enterprises.

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