To:

- Universities, institutes;
\r\n - Junior colleges, colleges

Upon implementing the Directive No. 7823/CT-BGDDT\r\nof the Minister of Education and Training dated October 27, 2009 on the key\r\nhigher education mission in the academic year 2009-2010 and the Decision No.\r\n179/QD-BGDDT of the Minister of Education and Training dated January 11, 2010\r\non approval of the action program for implementation of the Resolution No.\r\n05-NQ/BCSD of the Communist Party Staff Committee dated January 6, 2010 on\r\nhigher education management reforms for the period 2010-2012, colleges and\r\nuniversities need to construct and announce the graduation standards for\r\ntraining disciplines of these colleges and universities. This is considered the\r\nkey mission in this academic year, one of the measures that contributes to\r\nimproving the training quality of each training institution and the entire\r\ntraining area, and the commitment of higher education institutions on the\r\ntraining quality that meets social demands, or on the student’s competence\r\nafter graduation.   

In order to ensure consistency of contents, methods\r\nfor constructing and announcing the graduation standards for training\r\ndisciplines, the Ministry of Education and Training shall guide higher\r\neducation institutions through construction and announcement of the graduation\r\nstandards for university and college-level training disciplines as follows:

1. Definition of the graduation standard for a\r\ntraining discipline

The graduation standards refer to regulations on\r\nprofessional knowledge contents; practical skills, capability of absorbing\r\ntechnologies and solving problems; work duties that students may undertake\r\nafter graduation and other particular requirements relevant to each training\r\nlevel and discipline.

2. Objectives of construction and announcement\r\nof graduation standards

a) Inform society of training competence and\r\nconditions for assurance of the training quality of each higher education\r\ninstitution to serve the following purposes: keep students, parents and\r\nrecruiters informed of this to perform their supervisory functions; fulfill\r\nhigher education institution’s commitments to society on the training quality\r\nin order for administrators, lecturers and students to make every effort to\r\nimprove their teaching and learning ability; reform training administration,\r\nteaching method, examination or assessment method, and learning method; clearly\r\ndefine obligations and enhance responsibilities of staff of administrators or\r\nlecturers in teaching, teaching assistance and managerial activities in order\r\nto help students improve their learning and self-study practice with a view to\r\nsatisfying graduation standards.   

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c) Provide opportunities for increasing cooperation\r\nand connection between higher education institutions and enterprises in\r\ntraining and using workforce to meet social demands and requirements of\r\nrecruiters.

3. Elements of graduation standards

Depending on objectives and professional\r\nrequirements of each training discipline, higher education institutions shall\r\nconstruct and announce the graduation standards on the basis of studying and\r\nconsulting overseas experience; training reality and particular conditions of\r\nspecific higher educational institutions in order to ensure that graduation\r\nstandards are of scientific, practical and can be implemented in reality. \r\n Graduation standards for training disciplines at each level are composed\r\nof the following elements:

a) Training discipline name: in Vietnamese or\r\nEnglish;

b) Training level: associate or bachelor degree;

c) Knowledge requirements: professional intellect,\r\ncareer competency, etc.

d) Skill requirements:

- Hard skills: professional, professional practical,\r\nsituational, problem solving skills, etc.  

- Soft skills: communication, teamwork, language\r\nand computer skills, etc.

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- Moral standards, career consciousness and citizen\r\nresponsibilities;

- Professional responsibilities, ethics, behaviors\r\nand attitudes;

- Knowledge updating ability and working\r\ncreativity.

e) Work position of graduated students;

g) Opportunities for further learning and knowledge\r\nimprovement;

h) International programs, materials or standards\r\nthat the higher education institution consults.

4. Processes for construction and announcement\r\nof graduation standards

Step 1. The rector of a higher education\r\ninstitution establishes the Steering Committee for construction and\r\nannouncement of graduation standards of his institution. The Committee is\r\ncomposed of the rector, deputy rector in charge of training affairs, head of\r\nthe finance planning division, head of the training division, head of the\r\nscience division, heads of faculties, heads of subject groups, experts of\r\nsubject groups or representatives of faculties in respect of several\r\ninterdisciplinary training areas, representatives of recruiters (employers).

(As for universities, construction and announcement\r\nof graduation standards for training disciplines shall be conducted by member\r\ninstitutions).

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Step 3. Faculties conduct construction of draft graduation\r\nstandards, hold survey polls to collect opinions from administrators,\r\nscientists, lecturers, recruiters and alumni, etc., and complete graduation\r\nstandards for specific training disciplines.

Step 4, Faculties send draft graduation standards\r\nto collect feedbacks from recruiters, enterprises and alumni, etc.

Step 5. The Science and Training Council of a\r\nfaculty supplements and completes draft graduation standards for training\r\ndisciplines on the basis of collecting and analyzing feedbacks from enterprises,\r\nrecruiters and alumni, etc., and reports to the Science and Training Council of\r\nthe higher education institution.

Step 6. The Science and Training Council of a\r\nhigher education institution holds workshops and survey polls on draft\r\ngraduation standards of all of training disciplines.

Step 7. Draft graduation standards for specific\r\ntraining disciplines are posted on the websites of institutions in order for\r\nadministrators, scientists, lecturers, students, recruiters, alumni,\r\ninstitutions/faculties that have the same area of study, etc. inside or outside\r\nof these institutions to give their opinions.

Step 9. All contributing opinions are processed,\r\nand official graduation standards for training disciplines are completed and\r\nsigned to be launched by the rector on the website of each institution, and\r\nprinted in the employee handbooks and handouts; made known to society by means\r\nof media, and submitted in writing to the Ministry of Education and Training\r\nfor reporting purposes (through the Higher Education Department, Department of\r\nExamination and Education Quality Assessment).  

Step 9. Graduation standards must be re-checked,\r\nrevised and amended on a periodic basis and meet increasing demands of society\r\nand recruiters in a timely manner.

Every year, higher education institutions re-check\r\nand modify graduation standards which meet practical demands and are consistent\r\nwith technological and scientific development requirements as well as meet\r\nsocial demands and requirements of recruiters over periods of time.

5. Conditions for assurance of graduation\r\nstandards

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Construction and announcement of graduation\r\nstandards are considered compulsory, commitments of higher education\r\ninstitutions on the training quality to enable social oversight. Therefore,\r\nbased on instructions provided by the Ministry of Education and Training,\r\nuniversities, institutes, colleges or junior colleges must take action to\r\nconstruct and announce graduation standards for their specific training\r\ndisciplines and levels immediately in the second semester of the academic year\r\n2009 - 2010.

PP. THE\r\n MINISTER
\r\n THE DEPUTY MINISTER
\r\n
\r\n
\r\n
\r\n
\r\n Pham Vu Luan