Fishing village girl receives scholarships from 6 American universities

Deciding not to enroll in Foreign Trade University but to stay home and study, fishing village girl Nguyen Thi Ha Giang has just been awarded scholarships by 6 American universities, including a 4-year full course at Pitzer School worth 6 billion VND.

Nguyen Thi Ha Giang (former student of the English specialized class of 2013-2015, Ha Tinh High School for the Gifted) impresses people with her intelligent eyes and the smile that is always on her lips.Born into a coastal fishing family in Cam Nhuong commune, Cam Xuyen district, Giang has always dreamed of going beyond the waves since she was a child. When she entered high school, the female student set a goal of hunting for a scholarship to study abroad.

"Many people always ask me why I was born in a small fishing village but still cherish such a big dream? The most correct reason is probably because I always see this life through the eyes of a child. Children always dare to dream, in their eyes, there are no realistic or unrealistic dreams," Giang shared.

Nguyen Thi Ha Giang (right), a 19-year-old female student, received a 6 billion VND scholarship from Pitzer College.

Giang’s journey to win a scholarship has been full of obstacles. In 11th grade, she hoped to win a scholarship from the United World Colleges for High School Students (UWC), but was unsuccessful. That first failure took her some time to regain her balance.

After graduating from grade 12, Giang was admitted to Hanoi Foreign Trade University with 26 points. Seeing many friends packing up to study in the capital, Giang half wanted to go to school, half wanted to test herself, spending more time at home studying for exams to find scholarships to study abroad.

In the end, Giang decided to stay home to focus on learning English and apply to many universities in the US, including Pitzer College (ranked 36th in the US national liberal arts university system in the state of California).

"I love Pitzer because of the school's five core values: social responsibility, cross-cultural understanding, holistic learning, student engagement, and environmental protection. These are completely similar to my own values, so I am determined to conquer them," Giang said.

After half a year of submitting applications and taking exams, the fishing village girl was surprised when Pitzer College accepted her application and agreed to award a scholarship worth 64,000 USD/year (equivalent to 6 billion VND for 4 years of study). 5 other universities in the US including: Columbia College in South Carolina, University of Cincinatti, Sienna College, Troy University, Drexel University also sent letters of scholarship.

The female student smiled and confided that her achievements came from a process of constant effort. The most difficult part was the time preparing documents and taking the SAT (a standardized test for college admission in the US). After more than two months of self-study, Giang achieved a high score.

Regarding the essay submitted to Pitzer College, Giang said that he wrote about a small fishing village, presenting the perspective that whether it is a city or a village, there are powerful people and vulnerable people everywhere, and that there is a need for human connection everywhere. The essay, combined with the application and other components, was highly appreciated by the admissions office and led to the decision to grant the scholarship.

Besides studying, Giang often participates in volunteer groups, helping lonely elderly people.

"My motto in life is very simple, there are only three things: live positively and optimistically; always be kind, caring and loving to others; live responsibly towards society," Giang said, adding that she wants to become a connector, both doing good things and helping those who need her.

Talking about her plans, the former student of Ha Tinh High School for the Gifted informed that she will go to the US to study at Pitzer College next August. Giang plans to try to learn and study general knowledge in her first year, and in her second year she will choose an available major, or design her own major that suits her.

As a former homeroom teacher of the English specialized class at Ha Tinh High School for the Gifted, Mr. Le Huu Khuyen assessed that his former student had a combination of all factors such as intelligence, diligence, sharpness, and was very active in participating in extracurricular activities.

"Ha Giang studies all subjects equally, always has a goal in mind for everything she does. She is very suitable for the requirements and standards set by American universities," said Mr. Khuyen.

According to VNE