On the occasion of the celebration of Vietnamese Teachers' Day on November 20 and the 75th anniversary of the tradition of the University of Literature, the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, VNU, the USSH information page had the opportunity to talk with "Humanists" and record emotional sharing about the tradition and lessons crystallized from the brilliant development journey over the past 75 years. They are generations of teachers, scientists, managers, students, alumni, trainees... who have been attached to the School at many times, historical turning points of the development journey. What are the lessons, the things that need to be cherished and preserved forever? What are the things that need to be jointly cultivated and looked towards the future?
In 1993, following the Party's policy, the Prime Minister decided to establish VNU. In September 1995, I received the decision to become the Principal of the School. At first, the School faced many difficulties. In terms of facilities, the school's premises were only half of the former Hanoi University. The campus was only over 1 hectare. The buildings were all old. The initial funding was zero.
The work of the school at that time focused on several main stages. The first was to select and build a team of management staff who were truly dedicated and truly devoted to the cause of building the school. At that time, building a Board of Directors was said to be very strong, and the strongest was to unite as one, striving to build the school. Then, building a Headmaster Block, small but full of dedicated teachers, with a very high sense of responsibility. That was the first task.
The second thing is to do a good job of ideological work. It must be said that Hanoi National University is a prestigious university, a source of pride for all teachers and students of the University. The feeling of regret for Hanoi National University is still very heavy. At that time, it is necessary to do a good job of ideological work for staff and students: We do not forget Hanoi National University, we develop on the foundation of Hanoi National University but focus on building the social sciences and humanities of Hanoi National University to a new level, a new stature. Thanks to that, we create a very high consensus, an enthusiastic atmosphere, solidarity and unity to build the University.
The third thing is to focus on building a new training system. Previously, with the structure of Hanoi University, the school only had a few faculties: Faculty of History, Faculty of Literature, Faculty of Philosophy, Faculty of Economics... When building the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, on the basis of that structure, the school decided to establish new training majors: International Studies, Oriental Studies, Tourism Studies, Management Science... The training structure of the school is very rich.
Over the past 25 years, the most important resource of the University has been human resources, still the team of very famous, erudite, dedicated teachers; still the very good tradition of Hanoi University, and the tradition of humanistic solidarity. Besides, with a series of correct orientations, on the basis of the high unity and consensus of teachers and students, a spirit of sacrifice, striving, all for the school. In a short time, more than 1 year later, the difficulties were gradually resolved. The facilities were improved step by step. Building an additional Headquarters building, called Building D, upgrading lecture halls, focusing on the issue of curriculum and lesson plans. And at that time, teachers and students all saw that having a separate University of Social Sciences and Humanities was indeed an advantage. The development period came early and was quite solid, creating excitement throughout the school.
There are three most profound lessons learned in the early years of establishing the school. And over time, those lessons have been proven to be very correct. That is the lesson of unity and solidarity, first of all in the leadership team. The second lesson is to have a long-term vision, a correct orientation, but it must be concretized into a plan, into steps. What should we focus on each year, and in each year, each quarter? Which stage must be prioritized first, which stage must be implemented later? Thanks to that, the steps of the school are steady, sustainable, and effective. And the third most profound lesson for the school is to care for people. Everything must be for people, for people: caring for, nurturing, and training the teaching staff; caring for and motivating students to study, research, and create.
Up to the present stage, the lessons of the early period have not been lost but still have their value. There may be many things that are different and must be different, but there are things that will never be different. That is solidarity and unity, which is needed and valuable in every era. And secondly, humanity, humanism, moral living and affection are never outdated. Let's take solidarity and unity, let's take the spirit of humanity and kindness as the constant to respond to all changes of the times.
In the coming time, in my opinion, the University of Social Sciences and Humanities must still rely on and exploit, promote to the maximum the strengths of the former Hanoi National University, a leading basic scientific training and research institution of the country. In the coming years, in the field of training, in addition to the current majors and majors, the University needs to conduct research to build and develop new, interdisciplinary scientific majors, to both continue to promote the strengths of research and training in basic majors such as Philosophy, History, Literature, Linguistics, etc. and to have new training majors to meet the needs of social development in Vietnam as well as towards training global citizens. Bachelors, masters, and doctors of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities will not only work in Vietnam but also be competitive in the international labor market.
In order to soon turn the University into an advanced research university in the region, it is necessary to focus on expanding and developing postgraduate training, because postgraduate training is a very important requirement for building a research university. In the field of scientific research, the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, in addition to implementing existing programs and projects, also needs to focus on building new research directions, in order to play an important and core role in proposing arguments and points of view to contribute to policy advice for the Party and State in developing the country, especially in the field of building culture and building modern Vietnamese people.
In addition, in science, it is necessary to aim for international publication. But to increase international publication, it is necessary to soon develop and enhance the position of the Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities into a prestigious scientific journal of the region and the world in the field of social sciences and humanities.
Over a long period of establishment and development, people have talked a lot about the “quality” of Synthesis and now the “quality” of Humanities. That has affirmed a brand of Synthesis-Humanities playing a pivotal role in the multidisciplinary structure of VNU, in the context that Social Sciences and Humanities both in the world and in the country are facing the need for adjustment. That is a great advantage that the tradition of the University brings. The University has also determined the motto: to maintain traditional and fundamental scientific values and on that basis, always accumulate and integrate with the development trends of modern Digital Humanities to ensure both academic and traditional qualities but also catch up with new trends in research and training today.
The school determines to innovate and restructure training programs to be more suitable; in scientific research, it harmonizes the classics of a long-standing academic center with the grasp of research trends to better serve the practical problems of the country. International integration and development of cooperative relationships will follow a practical, substantial and selective direction to improve efficiency. The school will pay special attention to developing staff, having effective and flexible policies so that each staff can promote their professional strengths, have motivation to work, and contribute to research and teaching for the school. Other tasks of modern education such as quality assurance, development of facilities, modern administration... will also be drastically invested in and adjusted by the school to move towards an advanced university administration, meeting the criteria of modern education in the 21st century in the context of integration and the digital age.
To talk about this school, I want to talk about the following very important things:
Firstly, in this school, there is a spirit, a passion for teaching, learning and research - that passion is like a fire that any student entering the school on the first days can deeply feel from their teachers. These are the teachers whose hands are full of chalk after finishing a lesson on the board, the teachers whose backs are wrinkled but whose voices always rise up clearly during the lessons.
The second thing I learned from my teachers is the seriousness and meticulousness in their work. When doing anything, whether teaching students or participating in scientific research, we can feel that teachers do everything with the utmost thoughtfulness, concern, and care.
And what makes this school's brand, what we hear, see and feel with our hearts - is kindness and humanity. There is a very special kindness in this school and it is a tradition, a soul that has been passed down through countless generations. Here, people treat colleagues with colleagues; leaders with staff; teachers with students... with kindness, sincerity and the best things. Those are the values that I am most proud of and learned the most during my time as a student and later as a lecturer at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities.
As a former student of the School, now a lecturer, working at this school for more than 15 years; the proudest thing for us is the long-lasting tradition of academic research and teaching of generations of teachers of this school. In our Faculty of Literature, teachers from the first generations built the Faculty and the School with a passion for science, with a love for basic sciences. Thanks to that, teachers have built a system of massive and classic scientific works, passing on to the next generation valuable knowledge foundations; passing on to us their love, passion, and dedication to science, to the cause of education. We hope to continue to pass on that love and passion to the next generations of students.
Society is constantly changing and facing new demands, our generation of lecturers has the responsibility to promote and extend that tradition, while also striving to have our own innovations. Constantly changing ourselves, always moving to self-study according to new trends and research and teaching tendencies is what we always keep in mind. We innovate training programs to both maintain the traditional features and scientific character that previous generations have shaped, but at the same time adapt well to today's modern social environment that requires increasingly creative and dynamic thinking.
As a former student who studied and grew up at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, we are always proud of the tradition of research and training of the University. We have left behind many unforgettable memories at this school and have studied and grown up from here.
In terms of knowledge, from the tradition of Hanoi National University to the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, we are equipped with a comprehensive and profound knowledge base of basic sciences in the field of Social Sciences and Humanities, on which we can quickly integrate into the practice of the profession and the labor market. After graduating, I spent 16 years as a university lecturer in Philosophy and Political Science. Since 2016, I have shifted to real estate business at Danko Group. Whether teaching, researching or currently working in real estate investment, the knowledge learned from teachers at school still accompanies us on our career path and in life. The unique "quality" of the school that permeates the learners is the scientific thinking in problem solving, the way of looking at life in a comprehensive and long-term perspective. We still apply all of these to the orientation, planning and development strategy of the unit and of ourselves.
On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the tradition of the University of Literature, the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, VNU, I, as well as the students of the University, feel extremely proud to be the generation that continues the tradition and absorbs the valuable values of previous generations. As young people, born and raised in the era of integration, we not only strive to study, practice, and absorb new knowledge but also always dynamically change with the flow of society and the times. We will live and contribute to be worthy of being students of the prestigious, traditional school called the University of Social Sciences and Humanities.