Challenge
Vietnam has one of the lowest rates of post-secondary education in Southeast Asia and the World Economic Forum cites an inadequately educated workforce as one of the key challenges of doing business in the country. More skilled workers are needed to address key challenges such as climate change, cybersecurity, and urbanization.
Solution and Impact
DFC financing is supporting the expansion of Fulbright University Vietnam with a new campus in Ho Chi Minh City that will serve up to 1,300 students. Fulbright, Vietnam’s first independent nonprofit university, offers degrees in engineering, liberal arts, and public policy and partners with multiple American universities including Harvard and the University of Texas to bring a high-quality undergraduate and graduate education to Vietnam. As the first college in Vietnam to offer needs-based tuition assistance, the university is also expanding access to affordable education.
The project also advances DFC’s 2X Women’s Initiative. Women comprise 65 percent of Fulbright’s undergraduates and 53 percent of its graduate students.