Written by Dang Vu, Communications Manager, British Council Vietnam

Over 100 policy-makers, educators and industry leaders from nine countries met in early August for a two-day policy dialogue in Vietnam. They came together to discuss the challenges that face the higher education sector, focussing on employability skills in Southeast Asia and the needs of the new economy.

The dialogue launched a series of high-level conversations on key issues for internationalising higher education, which will take place in six Asian countries over the next six months.

With the global higher education landscape set to change dramatically in the next few years, education sectors in different countries need to decide how to deal with that change. One Hong Kong speaker at the event quoted a Chinese proverb: ‘When the winds of change blow, some build walls while others build windmills.’

Educators from Southeast Asia voiced their concerns over higher education lagging behind the ever-changing demands of industry. Vietnam’s Vice Minister of Education and Training, Dr Tran Quang Quy, said: ‘Higher education in Vietnam, like in other developing countries in Southeast Asia, has to face the challenge of graduates lacking skills that industries need. In this context, this dialogue creates an excellent opportunity for policy-makers, educators and businesses to share and learn from each other. Participants also benefit from many practical case studies and models of best practice presented by international speakers from prestigious education institutions across the world.’

Dr Tran also discussed some planned solutions, such as building national qualification standards aligned with those of other countries and signing 100 Memoranda of Understanding with international businesses. This will hopefully stimulate greater collaboration in education, student mobility and research partnerships across the region.

Aston University is one of the leading UK universities for graduate employment and industry placements. In 2010-11, 87 per cent of Aston’s first degree graduates found graduate level employment within six months of graduation. Their Pro-Vice Chancellor Professor Alison Halsted was at the dialogue to share how this was achieved. The university has also embedded an employer-led engineering curriculum through the UK’s first major university-sponsored technical college, The Aston University Engineering College, which will open its doors to 14 -19 year olds this September.

After the dialogue, British Council Vietnam launched an initiative to provide small starting funds to UK and Vietnamese universities with the most viable partnership proposals for boosting student employability. Through initiatives like this and by supporting the Global Education Dialogue series, we are giving educators, policy-makers and industry leaders in Asia and the UK a chance to engage with each other, overcome shared challenges and make the most of future opportunities in higher education.

The next Global Education Dialogue in the Asia Series will take place in Hong Kong in September and will consider the future of research networks in East Asia.

Click here for more photos and captions about the Conference

*Photo - From the left: Two dialogue participants with panelists Professor Alison Halsted, Pro-Vice Chancellor of Aston University, and Director of British Council Vietnam Robin Rickard