“I obtained a doctorate from the French Grenoble Institute of Technology, and worked for five years at Minatec, considered Europe’s Silicon Valley. After that, I returned to Vietnam and have been working at Hanoi National University since then," Tran Xuan Tu, head of the Information Technology Institute under the Hanoi National University, said at a recent workshop on the industry.

"In 2009, I contacted Synopsys to ask for support in some microchip design tools for my school. We believe that the first thing we need to do is create a good environment for study and research, to attract more excellent professors, lecturers and students."

“We cooperate with foreign companies and foreign invested enterprises (FIEs) as well, such as Renesas and Toshiba. We conduct research to make money to support laboratories. We have a fund to provide scholarships to students. Every year, we have 30-40 students studying and working at microchip design labs. Most students go abroad to work for chip design firms, or they work at FIEs in Vietnam,” he said.

“Many graduates are working for Dolphin, Intel and Schwatztech. Our two students have become professors in Japan and France in microchip design,” he said.

As a former member of the board of directors at Mediatek, one of the world’s leading microchip design companies that creates products for mobile technology, Ming-Je Tang from Chang Gung University in Taiwan (China) said the semiconductor industry is a heavy industry that requires huge investment. Microchip design is a light industry which doesn’t need huge capital, but needs many talented staff. And in order to attract talent, it is necessary to offer them many preferences.

The best preference is shares, according to Ming-Je Tang. In many cases, in Taiwan (China), microchip design firms give their workers 20 percent of total profits in shares. They don’t give cash, but give shares based on the value workers bring.

In 2022, Taiwan had 50,000-53,000 design engineers, and the revenue from products and services from microchip design companies reached $40 billion.

Educators and businesses

Operating in the analog and digital signal industry, Qorvo Vietnam not only does design, but also undertakes all work in the supply chain to create and sell products and semi-finished products. It now has 110 workers and plans to expand staff by 30-35 percent this year.

“This is not easy,” said Harry Trinh, EO of Qorvo Vietnam. “The semiconductor industry needs workers for many different production stages and requires longer training for certain posts. Therefore, we need to cooperate with universities to provide students with a vision about a reasonable approach."

“Training establishments and businesses need to link each other to shorten the study duration,” Trinh suggested.

He said that his firm is closely cooperating with the University of Technology, a member school of the Hanoi National University, the Hanoi University of Science and Technology, and the Hanoi Industry University to build training programs.

“We can share knowledge and experiences with universities, and we can together produce a high-quality workforce and provide value to the global supply chain,” he said.

Meanwhile, Thai Tran, program manager for Accreditation and Quality Assurance in ASU Representative Office (ASURO) in Vietnam, said the International Technology Security and Innovation (ITSI) Fund under the US Department of State, through ASU (Arizona State University), will give financial support of tens of million of dollars for developing countries, including Vietnam.

ITSI, an important initiative under the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Act signed by US President Joe Biden in 2022, aims to diversify the global semiconductor supply chain. The ITSI Fund involves strategic cooperation with six partners, with Vietnam being the center of the project.

Preparation

Robert Li, vice president of Synopsys, praised Vietnam’s strong determination to develop a semiconductor industry.

“Everyone can see opportunities. But to grasp the opportunities, one needs to have capital and talented staff, and have reasonable policies. This is the ‘three in one’ principle to turn everything into reality,” he said. “The government needs to be a fellow traveler with businesses. Meanwhile, training establishments need to make preparations."

VNN