At a recent meeting with overseas Vietnamese scientists and entrepreneurs organized by Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST), Prof. Vu Van Yem, vice president of the University, said the school is expected to become a key university, creating breakthroughs in science, technology, and innovation.

For the 2025-2035 period, the university aims to break into the top 150 in Asia, but not by chasing formal rankings but by aiming for qualitative changes in training and research. 

According to Yem, for that to happen, human resources, including both domestic and international scientists, must play a key role. “The university has developed a scheme to attract young PhDs, leading scientists, and engineers from major technology corporations to work with flexible cooperation mechanisms, which can be short-term or long-term,” Yem said.

Nguyen Trung Kien, chair of the State Commission for Overseas Vietnamese (Ministry of Foreign Affairs), said the overseas Vietnamese community has great potential in terms of capacity, technology, economy, and enthusiasm. However, in recent times, the effectiveness of connecting this resource with the domestic sector has not been truly commensurate.

He said salary levels offered by HUST to attract talent can be considered a “revolution” compared to the current salary system of civil servants. Even so, compared to the income that scientists are enjoying abroad, there is still a gap. 

“We hope that in the coming time there will be commitment from Vietnamese scientists abroad returning to contribute to the Fatherland. Conversely, domestic agencies must also boldly ‘break the rocks to open the road’ and remove barriers,” Kien emphasized.

Nguyen Thanh Vinh of the University of New South Wales (Australia) noted that the issue goes beyond remuneration. “Many Vietnamese scientists abroad want to return and contribute to their homeland, because they still carry a deep sense of patriotism and a desire to give back to Vietnam in one way or another,” he said.

He has returned to Vietnam many times to meet with institutes and universities in search of cooperation opportunities, and has even been willing to contribute his experience and expertise free of charge. However, so far, these efforts have remained at the level of discussion.

“Mechanisms are already in place, but perhaps we still lack trust, openness, and frank, in-depth conversations with each other,” he said.

“I hope that after just a few discussions, cooperation can move straight into substance. Collaboration does not need to be grand or formal; it can start with a training program, a project, or even a short course, and we are ready to get started immediately. Therefore, the decisive factor is not salary, but goodwill and the ability to implement quickly,” he added.

Vinh was the runner-up of the Road to Olympia, a well known contest for excellent students, in 2000 and won a silver medal at the International Chemistry Olympiad. He is also known to audiences for his role as Nam in the television series” Phia truoc la bau troi” (The sky ahead). 

He studied industrial chemistry at the University of New South Wales starting in 2001. In 2010, he was admitted as a doctoral candidate due to outstanding academic achievements. After successfully defending his PhD thesis in Australia, he worked on organic catalysis at the RWTH Aachen Institute of Organic Chemistry (Germany). He is currently a professor at the University of New South Wales.

Meanwhile, Ha Son Tung, currently working at the Singapore Academy of Sciences, said that in terms of human resources, Vietnam is not inferior to any country and does not lack talent.

“Currently, Vietnamese people hold many key positions in corporations and businesses globally, including in spearhead fields such as AI and semiconductors. Therefore, people are not the barrier because Vietnamese people have enough ability to elevate science,” Tung said. 

Regarding investment in science, according to Tung, Vietnam currently uses about 3 percent of the budget for science and technology. This figure is much larger than Singapore's.

However, that large resource has not created regional-level scientific centers. He said the reason may be that investment is still fragmented, lacking strong leading centers to lead.

In addition, bringing talented people back still faces many entanglements. There must be a clear policy mechanism, good facilities, and commensurate working conditions for scientists to promote their full capacity.

Proposal to raise base salary for civil servants from January 2026

VOV.VN - Several National Assembly (NA) deputies have proposed adjusting the base salary for civil servants, noting that adequate income is essential for them to focus on public service without financial concerns.