Professor Nguyen Tien Thao, Director of the Higher Education Department, Ministry of Education and Training, announced on 21/11 that this proposal aims to improve the quality of PhD training.

According to Thao, PhD training outcomes depend not only on the curriculum, scientific research staff, and research topics but also on the time dedicated and financial support, including scholarships.

"Providing full scholarships for PhD candidates is a crucial step for them to focus on their studies and complete their doctoral dissertations," Thao said. "This also creates competition and attracts international students to study and conduct research in Vietnam."

A PhD student conducts an experiment in a cleanroom at the University of Natural Sciences, Vietnam National University, Hanoi. *Photo: Giang Huy*

The Ministry of Education and Training's statistics show that national PhD enrollment targets are about 5,000-7,000 annually, but typically less than 50% of these slots are filled.

Currently, postgraduate students, including those pursuing PhDs, must pay tuition fees, with amounts varying by institution. The government sets the tuition cap for PhD programs at 2.5 times the undergraduate tuition cap. For non-autonomous universities, PhD tuition ranges from 3.8 to nearly 7.8 million dong per month.

Only PhD candidates in specific medical fields such as psychiatry, pathological anatomy, forensic medicine, forensic psychiatry, infectious diseases, and emergency resuscitation at public universities are exempt from tuition. Additionally, some universities offer scholarships or provide financial support through teaching or research assistant activities.

In contrast, in many countries like the United States, South Korea, and Singapore, PhD candidates are not only exempt from tuition but also receive scholarships sufficient for living expenses and dissertation completion, along with salaries for teaching or research assistant roles with their supervisors.

During yesterday's National Assembly discussion, Professor Hoang Van Cuong, former Vice Rector of National Economics University, agreed with the proposal to grant scholarships and tuition support for full-time PhD training. He believes this helps PhD candidates concentrate on their studies and research.

However, Cuong noted that this approach would only help PhD candidates produce good doctoral dissertations, making it difficult to create complete research products for practical application.

He proposed that the state provide funding and assign key research tasks to PhD training institutions. These institutions would then select PhD candidates whose abilities align with specific parts of the required work, matching the state's commissions. In turn, universities would use these funds to cover scholarships and tuition for PhD candidates.

Duong Tam