Nguyen Ngoc Son (third from right, upper row) and his fellows.

Right after I knew Son winning the prestigious scholarship offered by the U.S government, I tried to contact him through email, facebook, zalo and viber but it was not easy due to time difference. 

He shared, it took him two months to settle into the new environment, improve his foreign language and make new friends in the U.S. As being funded by the U.S government for his study and living expenses, Son has been given opportunities to attend a one-year professional training course in public policy and land and natural resources management while interning in some agencies of this country.

Fulbright scholarship granted by the U.S government is one of the most competitive fellowship programs. Since 1978, only 40 young Vietnamese candidates have won this scholarship. This program aims to select young and prospective people having leadership competence and contributing to the community. 

The candidates from over the world have to go through the selection process of three steps including essay writing (about 5,000 words in English) expressing their experiences, knowledge and plans for the development of the sector they are working.

After passing this step, candidates will be interviewed in English by the selection Council (including officials of the U.S Embassy, specialists and the graduate fellows). Finally, applications of the hundreds of candidates will be considered by the senior Council in the U.S. Thus, this program does not offer fixed quota for each country. One country can send many or no candidates to take part in this program.

Nguyen Ngoc Son applied for this scholarship for the initial purpose of challenging himself and gaining experience. He spent time self-studying foreign language via Youtube aiming to score minimum 61 in TOEFL. Each day, he learned some sentences, practiced some conversations or wrote one essay. Thus, his English had been gradually improved.

As he had been assigned to different work positions from district to provincial levels, he had opportunities to work with public officials, enterprises and local people. His experience at work helped him to pass the examinations and interview to be selected.

Nguyen Ngoc Son (second from left) and his fellows.

Although many people wonder if studying in the U.S can help to solve the local issues, Son has different thinking. He thought, in a flat and open world, not only the private sector but also state agencies have to be open-minded to rapid response and catch up with the current trends.

Besides, he thinks if young people (especially public officials) still keep old thinking and smugness while the world is changing, they will be left behind. Hence, Son has been studying hard and grasping new knowledge. He said, after he finishes the course, he wants to continue working and advising his agency and leaders to build proper and advanced policies. Like one saying of American people “Stay foolish, stay hungry!" He hopes he can motivate and open a new look for young people.

Tuyet Mai