Refused to go to university to work abroad

On the morning of August 28, the Ministry of Education and Training announced that nationwide, there were more than 122,000 candidates who passed the university entrance exam but dropped out, accounting for more than 18% of the total number of candidates who passed the university entrance exam in the first round this year, an increase of 9.6% compared to 2023.

This situation not only wastes educational resources but also creates many challenges for universities and society.

One of the main reasons why many candidates do not enroll is because the quality of training at universities does not meet expectations. Many schools lack equipment, teaching staff, and do not have training programs that meet the practical needs of the labor market. The second biggest problem is the high cost of education. Although their children have passed the university entrance exam, many families have difficulty covering the cost of education. The third reason is the attractiveness of vocational study abroad programs (study and work) and labor export. It is worth noting that the third reason is when students accept to work as manual laborers abroad.

Many people calculate that 4 years of university costs about 300-400 million VND. After graduating and finding a good job, it will take a dozen years to recover. Meanwhile, investing only about 150 million VND to work abroad will immediately bring in a monthly income of several tens of millions VND. It only takes half a year to recover the capital, the remaining time is enough to accumulate several hundred million VND to calculate for the next stage.

Young people who graduate from high school and go to work abroad can only supplement the large number of unskilled workers in Vietnam abroad. When they graduate from high school and go to work abroad, they usually only work as factory workers, salesmen, housekeepers, or farmers. Unskilled workers abroad can only solve the immediate problem of employment and income, while the long-term goals of labor export, such as vocational skills and industrial labor skills, are not significantly acquired.

According to the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, in the first 7 months of 2024, Hai Duong had more than 5,700 workers working abroad under contracts, exceeding the target set for the whole year by 27%. Among them are many young people, especially those who do not attend university. If they go to work abroad, they will have an income of several tens of millions of VND per month. Compared to the income in the host countries, it is not high, but the difference in the value of money when sent back to their families is quite attractive.

Is dropping out of college to work abroad a reasonable path for each individual? If more and more students drop out of college to find opportunities to earn money abroad through working abroad, the skilled labor force, those with high skills and qualifications, will decrease. So if this situation happens more and more, what will happen to the country's human resources?

Hai Duong, like many provinces and cities across the country, is actively attracting investment in many fields. The province is also building a specialized economic zone. It is a fact that many businesses in the province are "thirsty" for high-quality labor. You can consider choosing vocational training to improve your skills before finding a way to export labor. That way, not only will you benefit from the income level for skilled workers abroad, but when you return home, you will have a degree, skills, and through practical experience with professional production models, which will help you have better job opportunities when you return home.

Students and their families need to carefully consider their future before deciding to refuse to go to university, college or vocational school to work abroad right after graduating from high school.

Career guidance should be done early, right from junior high school, so that students have time to learn, explore themselves and choose suitable majors.