VietNamNet Bridge - While many state-owned universities have begun the academic year, private schools still do not know when their opening ceremonies will be held as they still lack students.

Dr. Vu Van Hoa, vice president of the Hanoi Business and Technology University, said on September 18 that the number of students applying at private schools remained modest.

“We plan to enroll 5,000 full-time students for 4-year training and 500 students for 3-year training. But after two enrolment campaigns, we have found only 1,800 students,” he said.

“The school is calling for more students in the third campaign, but we have received only 90 applications so far,” he said. 

Hoa is not sure if all the applicants will study at the school. A lot of students have canceled their applications for personal reasons, while others have to enter military service.

It is foreseeable that the Hanoi Business and Technology University will seriously lack students this year, though its facilities are very good. Its two campuses and the teaching staff of 1,114 are sufficient for training 5,000 students.

“Where have all the students gone? If we don’t have students, we will be dissolved,” Hoa said.

The Hanoi Business and Technology University is not alone. Some schools have  found only 10 percent of students needed. 

Nguyen Tien Luan, president of the Nguyen Trai University in Hanoi, noted that a lot of students were still at a ‘three-way crossroads’, remaining indecisive on what way to follow, or which schools to go to. 

They still are trying to wait to know if they can enroll in state-owned schools before applying for private schools.

Luan said that there are about 1 million high school graduates every year. Of these, 70-80 percent go to state-owned schools; therefore, the remaining students will not be enough for private schools.

“One million students for 500 universities (4-5-year training) and junior colleges (3-year training), and vocational schools as well. Will the number of students be enough for so many schools?” Luan said.

In most cases, state-owned schools are the students’ top priority. Only when failing to enter state-owned schools will students apply for private ones. 

Meanwhile, state-owned schools this year plan to enroll more students than previous years. As a result, there are not many students left for private ones.

Private schools have complained that the competition for students is unfair.

“The competition will be fair only when state-owned schools are also financially independent like us,” said Nguyen Duy Do, deputy rector of ASEAN College, which has found only 20 percent of students needed.

Infonet