Top 5 Miss Vietnam work 18 hours/day, earn from 60,000 VND

Nguyen Thuc Thuy Tien was born in 1998 and is currently a student of the French Faculty, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Ho Chi Minh City. She won the title of Miss Charity and Top 5 Miss Vietnam 2018. Before that, she was the runner-up of Miss Southern Vietnam 2017.

Thuy Tien is also famous on social networks as a contestant who received the behavioral question: "Do you think there is a place for beauty queens and beauties in implementing the 4.0 revolution?". Her answer was: "I majored in languages, the 4.0 revolution is a bit strange to me. In my opinion, in any era or society, if you try to fulfill your role and mission, you can contribute. The 4.0 revolution is no exception to that rule."

Zing.vnChat with the girl with sharp eyes and controversial answers of Miss Vietnam 2018.

“Many people do not understand what the 4.0 revolution is”

- People know you for your Miss Vietnam answer about the 4.0 revolution. Looking back, are you satisfied with your answer?

- I read the comments online, my answer created two streams of opinion. One was disagreement, the other thought I handled it well. As for me, I answered honestly. At that time, I was completely confident and calm in the face of such a difficult question and until now, I am still satisfied with that answer. If I have the opportunity to learn more about the 4.0 revolution, I will answer more thoroughly.

- But the online community also thinks that question is beyond the ability of most beauty pageant contestants?

- That question was to test the candidate's ability to improvise, not just knowledge. Each question given by the judges had its own reason, so I didn't wonder, I was only concerned about how I could answer.

- If you had to answer now, what would you say?

- If I don't have time to find out, my answer will still be the same. But if I have time to find out, I will definitely give a better answer.

- If many people hear that answer and judge you as unintelligent?

-I think I just say what I think. Actually, there are many people out there who don’t understand what the 4.0 revolution is. I also know the concept but I don’t understand it clearly. A friend who studies information technology also told me that he doesn’t dare to say that he understands the 4.0 revolution clearly. I was honest with myself, with the judges and with the audience, so I did well in the competition.

As for those who say I'm not smart, I'll tell them: you can't use one answer to judge someone's 20 years of education.

Not afraid of being considered a "village beauty" because of winning small titles

- When you became Miss Charity and entered the top 5 Miss Vietnam, did you think you would become a beauty queen?

- I didn't think I would be in the top 5 of Miss Charity, let alone the Top 5 of Miss Vietnam. So when I was called Miss Charity, I was so surprised that I forgot that I would be the first contestant to answer the question. I felt very satisfied because I didn't set a goal of being in the Top 5, only the Top 10. I was satisfied and had no other thoughts.

- Before Miss Vietnam, you also had experience in beauty contests, but those were small regional contests (Miss Southern Vietnam 2017, Thuy Tien won the runner-up prize). Are you afraid that you will be classified as a local beauty?

- After the 2017 Miss Southern Vietnam contest, I had almost no activities. I did not have a team or company to guide me into showbiz, so my name was not known to many people. My life after the runner-up title was that of a normal student. Therefore, I was not scrutinized as a village beauty.

For me, if people judge me just by looking at a picture, I don't care much. I only care about the comments of those who have come into contact with me.

Until now, people know me in many ways. Maybe “Miss Charity, Top 5 Miss Vietnam”. In the eyes of some people, it will be “the girl who answers poorly”, in the eyes of others, “the girl who answers sharply”. I cannot approach each person and show my personality to them.

My parents divorced when I was 4 years old, I cried so much that I became callous.

- The story of your parents' divorce has been mentioned a lot, but you have never shared specifically. How did that incident affect you?

- My parents divorced when I was 4 years old. This made me become the independent I am today. My personality is quite masculine, strong and independent.

When interacting with me, including the other 42 beauty pageant contestants, even for a short time, they also told me, “Be less manly!”. When the seniors carried their suitcases down from the bus for them, I also ran to help, even though I was still wearing a skirt and clogs. I did a lot of things myself.

- How did you get through the first time after your parents divorced?

- Those days were very difficult. The first day my mother left home, I cried until my eyes were swollen like two water balloons. I told my mother that at night, I sat on the stairs waiting for her to come home, but my aunt wouldn't let me wait, she beat me. The first time after my mother left, I cried a lot. My father also remarried and lived right next door, and I lived with my aunt, my grandmother's younger sister.

Later, when I was in primary and secondary school, I rarely cried in front of others. But at night, when I lay next to my aunt, I still hugged my pillow and cried alone. I missed my mother very much, often wrote letters to her and asked about my younger brother. When I was in high school, I was also less sensitive and did not express my emotions as much, you could say I was a bit callous.

Sometimes I sit and wonder if I'm being too callous, but I realize that I need to be like that to be stronger, because now I'm living on my own.

- You moved out when you went to university, even though your family also lived in Ho Chi Minh City. Why did you decide to do that?

- Ever since I was little, I had the intention of living on my own, and I only did it when I was 18. My aunt raised me without any regular support from my parents. My parents only came to visit occasionally, gave me money, and bought me a few things. My aunt also had a family to take care of. The fact that she took care of me from the age of 4 to 18 was a huge favor. So when I was old enough to go to university, I moved out.

- Living alone at only 18 years old, she faced many difficultiesWhat?

- I raced to earn enough money to pay for tuition. After finishing the university entrance exam, I had 2 months free before school started in October. I spent those 2 months working 2 jobs at the same time, working 16 to 18 hours a day. I worked as a hotel receptionist and a spa receptionist in District 1. The job required me to travel constantly. Then on my days off, I worked as a makeup model, taking photos, earning 60,000 VND per session.

- When you went to college, did you not have any financial support from your family?

- No. After those summer jobs, I continued to work part-time when I entered university. I worked as a waiter in a restaurant, as a teaching assistant at an English center… At first, I worked and studied at the same time, so I couldn’t concentrate much. In terms of academic ability, I am more confident in my English than in my French. Currently, I am still trying to learn to communicate in basic French.

Before the Miss Vietnam pageant, I had registered to defer my studies for a year to get an IELTS certificate and then register to participate in international volunteer programs. After that, I will return to school and finish university. I will definitely not let my studies be unfinished.

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