Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense: Bringing students many job opportunities and improving their qualifications

The “double” benefits of the streaming program

“I will continue to study at the college level to get a Practical Engineering degree” - Truong Xuan Dat, a student of class 12E, answered when asked about his plan after graduating from class 12. Three years ago, Dat was a 9th grade student at Hai Hoa Secondary School (Cua Lo town). With average academic performance and limited capacity, instead of taking the high school entrance exam, Dat was advised by his teacher to follow the stream, which means he should study a trade.

Comrade Tran Minh Huyen - Head of Student Affairs Department, General Department of Vocational Education and a delegation of officials visited a cultural lesson at the Faculty of Basic Sciences. Photo: NTCC

Initially, upon receiving this information, Dat's parents were quite worried and concerned because despite the difficulties, the family still wanted their son to finish high school to "keep up with his friends". As for Dat, although he had prepared himself mentally, during the first month of studying at Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense, he still felt self-conscious and inferior. But after only 1 semester, that gap seemed to have been erased and Dat quickly caught up with the curriculum.

Sharing more about this, Truong Xuan Dat said: I feel suitable for the environment here and can adapt to the program of both studying culture and learning a profession. The teachers also care about us a lot and now I think that studying at high school is no longer so important. Instead, the most important thing is where your ability is and what your destination is. I myself currently have an intermediate degree in automotive technology and can make a living from this profession.

Students of Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense. Photo: NTCC

Nearly 1,500 students are studying in the streaming system at Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense, each student has a different situation. Among them, there are cases where due to limited capacity, they are oriented to vocational training. But there are also cases like student Ho Duc Trung - grade 10, who passed the entrance exam to Dien Chau 3 High School but still decided to go to vocational training because he liked the program of both studying culture and vocational training. Currently, Trung is also studying automobile technology. In the near future, he will register for an additional foreign language class at the school to improve his expertise and possibly work abroad after graduation.

From 2018 to present,Vocational College No. 4 – Ministry of National Defensehas organized propaganda and counseling for more than 20,000 secondary school students and has enrolled more than 4,500 students. After 3 years of studying at the school, students will have both a vocational secondary school diploma and a cultural graduation certificate and can continue their studies at the school to obtain a practical engineer or a practical bachelor's degree.

The school’s advantage is that its teaching staff of both general and vocational education are qualified and above standard, confirmed through the results of provincial, military and national exams and competitions. The school is also equipped with synchronous facilities with 88 theoretical, practical and modular classrooms, 9 practice workshops; 41 dormitories for students to practice with modern equipment.

In recent years, many new occupations have also been opened. As of the 2022-2023 school year, the school has built, completed and put into teaching 16 training occupations. The number of occupations at the school is increasingly diverse, keeping up with market trends, meeting the choices of both male and female students with traditional occupations such as: Automotive Technology, Construction Machinery Operation, Welding, Metal Cutting, Industrial Electricity, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineering.

Class time of 12th grade students, Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense. Photo: MH

In addition, many new professions in the field of Information Technology such as computer assembly and repair, website design and management, computer-aided drawing, applied informatics, e-commerce, business accounting; pharmacy; nursing... are also chosen by many students. Students studying at the school are supported with tuition fees and many other preferential policies according to regulations. Students in the commune are supported with dormitories at the school.

Student streaming is of particular importance to each individual and the whole society. In particular, student streaming after secondary school aims to guide students in choosing a path that is suitable to their abilities, strengths, aspirations, circumstances and psychological characteristics, creating opportunities for students to continue studying effectively.

Besides, this is suitable for the human resource requirements of society, creating conditions for learners to easily switch between educational programs, ensuring connectivity between training levels.

Lieutenant Colonel Phan Thi Hong Duyen – Head of Basic Department, Vocational College No. 4 – Ministry of National Defense

Expanding job opportunities, studying abroad, and labor export

To improve the effectiveness of vocational training for students in the stream and other subjects, Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense also pays special attention to job counseling and introduction at home and abroad. In recent years, dozens of enterprises have become partners and signed cooperation agreements with the school in coordinating vocational training, job introduction and labor recruitment such as Lilama Machinery Installation Corporation, Song Da Corporation, LG Vietnam Factory, Honda Vietnam, Samsung Vietnam.

Class time of students of the Faculty of Industrial Electricity. Photo: NTCC

Many students of the school after graduation have jobs, stable income and many promotion opportunities.

Recalling his time studying at school, Mr. Phan Cong - currently managing a Vietnamese car company in Nghe An also shared that more than 2 years of studying at school were 2 years that helped him mature: “After returning from the army, I registered to study automotive technology at the school. At that time, our age was quite mature, so the teachers were very interested, always creating conditions for us to study and improve our skills. The teachers were also very dedicated, had good expertise, and were responsible for their students. After graduating with basic training in automotive technology, I was able to do many jobs from mechanics, welding, electronics, machinery, equipment and had the opportunity to apply for jobs in many different companies. Many of my friends also made efforts and tried hard, and many of them are now business owners.”

Students are studying Japanese at Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense. Photo: NTCC

More than 90% of students graduating from Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense have stable jobs after graduation. In particular, currently, the training coordination with businesses, right from the time they go to practice, they have a salary with an income of 9 - 11 million VND/month. Receiving this result, not only students but also parents whose children are studying are very surprised and happy, because here the students not only have a good learning environment, high discipline but also receive attention from the school, creating conditions for them to soon approach businesses, and be recruited by businesses at the school.

In particular, in the past 2 years, the coordination with units and functional agencies to send workers to work abroad has been effective. Currently, at Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense, 7 Korean and Japanese language training classes are being organized to create conditions for students to simultaneously study vocational training, study high school culture and learn the language, connecting with many prestigious units such as the Provincial Employment Service Center to send workers to work abroad.

Class time of students at Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense. Photo: NTCC

Vocational College No. 4 - Ministry of National Defense is one of 70 schools that the Government has focused on investing in to become high-quality schools.

To meet the needs of students, the school is diversifying training methods with many distinct advantages and many preferential policies. The school is also constantly improving the quality of training, strengthening links with businesses, promoting connections to create more and more jobs for students after graduation. At the same time, the school is committed to creating conditions for students to easily transfer between educational programs, ensuring connectivity between training levels.

Colonel Nguyen Truong Son – Principal of Vocational College No. 4 – Ministry of National Defense