Cambodian university students go to Vietnam to study at... secondary school

A group of Cambodian lecturers and students watched experts instruct on hair washing techniques - Photo: TRONG NHAN

In mid-September, Nguyen Tat Thanh College (HCMC) welcomed a group of students and lecturers from Chenla University from Cambodia to study in a short-term exchange program on beauty care.

Chenla University is a private university in the capital city of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Established in 2007, it currently has over 2,000 students with majors in health sciences.

Students learn to wash hair, do nails...

Hout Sokreaksa is one of the Chenla University students in the group that came to Ho Chi Minh City to study this time. Hout Sokreaksa is studying a 4-year bachelor's degree in nursing. During his internships at a hospital in Phnom Penh, Sokreaksa noticed that more and more inpatients in this country are interested in maintaining their beauty.

For example, when taking a medication, patients often want to know how it affects their hair and skin. Or during their hospital stay, they can combine it with beauty care measures and nutrition to avoid effects on their skin and hair.

"Even a nurse who knows additional beauty care skills such as how to wash hair, massage the face, hands and feet... is also highly valued by many large hospitals in Cambodia compared to just knowing the main expertise," said Sokreaksa.

That is why when Sokreaksa heard about the program to study beauty care in Ho Chi Minh City, she immediately registered. Each session, Sokreaksa and her friends learned a topic from skin, face, hair, nails to skills such as makeup, shampooing, massage, spa...

In addition, you will also learn about cosmetics, medicinal herbs, and foods that are good for the body according to traditional Vietnamese concepts.

"In each class, I get to practice a lot. In addition, we get to work in groups. Each student has their own ideas, so when we study in groups, we can learn and exchange ideas from each other," Sokreaksa said.

Meanwhile, Chheng Seavnith, a first-year student majoring in medical laboratory technology at Chenla University, said that her trip to Vietnam was her first time abroad. According to Seavnith, Cambodia and Southeast Asian countries, especially Vietnam, have many similarities. Therefore, visiting and seeing how developed countries are will help students gain more experience and orient their careers.

Training Links

Mr. Mai Hoang Loc - Vice Principal of Nguyen Tat Thanh Secondary School - said that the lessons for Cambodian students and lecturers are conducted in Vietnamese with Cambodian interpreters.

The content is divided into four main modules including hair styling, makeup, nail care, and skin care. The class is taught by beauty care lecturers, combined with beauty experts who are operating large spa centers in Ho Chi Minh City.

According to Mr. Loc, the curriculum is divided into 70% practice and 30% theory. In addition to on-campus classes, the school also organizes field trips and internships for Cambodian students to reputable beauty care facilities operating in Ho Chi Minh City.

Mr. Sem Vottra - Head of Human Resources and Administration, Chenla University - shared that what was learned in Vietnam was very new not only in the eyes of students but also for Cambodian lecturers.

For example, with nails, many people often think it is very simple but in fact there are many types, each type has a different way of care. Not only that, teachers also explain the origin and process of making a fake nail to help students understand thoroughly and use it properly.

According to Mr. Sem Vottra, in Phnom Penh city alone, the number of beauty care facilities, spas, and massage parlors is growing, especially as the economy and living standards continue to develop. However, the city lacks qualified human resources. Most beauty care facilities will provide brief instructions to workers who come to apply for jobs and then hire them, but there are currently almost no formal vocational training centers.

Therefore, his school's strategy will be to anticipate this trend in human resource training, and the chosen learning model is Vietnam due to many similarities in culture and economy.

Mr. Sem Vottra said that after the first group of students and lecturers, another group of 50 people will continue to study in Vietnam in November. From these two groups, students who want to study in depth will be able to register for elementary and intermediate courses in Vietnam, which are jointly trained by the two schools.

Full coverage of first course

Dr. Hoang Quoc Long - Principal of Nguyen Tat Thanh Secondary School - said that the tuition fees for the first group of Cambodian students and lecturers are fully sponsored by the school. This is a way to promote the school's program to students in Cambodia, attracting those who want to study from Cambodia to Vietnam.

According to Mr. Long, the advantages in geographical location, culture and economic exchange between Vietnam and Cambodia are clearly an opportunity for Vietnamese colleges and universities to have programs for this group of international students.

Furthermore, Vietnamese people in Cambodia are one of the largest overseas Vietnamese communities. Therefore, the school will cooperate with Chenla University to have study programs for Vietnamese people in Cambodia in general and Phnom Penh in particular.

"For vocational schools, expanding international relations is not only about increasing recruitment opportunities, but more importantly, improving their own quality. When there are international students, the school's teaching staff and administrators will have to make more efforts and provide better quality lectures. Students in the school are motivated to improve their language and cultural exchange," said Mr. Long.

Will send lecturers for long-term training

Regarding the lecturers, according to Mr. Sem Vottra, Chenla University plans to send some of the school's potential lecturers to study longer-term courses at Nguyen Tat Thanh College.

Teachers will not only learn about their expertise but also learn how to organize and manage courses in the beauty care program, so that they can open this major at Chenla University in the near future.

Discover many interesting things

During his days in Ho Chi Minh City, in addition to the knowledge and skills learned at school, Seavnith discovered many interesting things when visiting famous tourist attractions.

"Vietnamese people are very friendly. It didn't take me too long to integrate. I think this is also an advantage for students from Cambodia to consider studying abroad or postgraduate studies in Vietnam because of its proximity, affordable costs, good quality of education and wide-open job opportunities," Seavnith said.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/sinh-vien-dai-hoc-camuchia-sang-viet-nam-hoc-truong-trung-cap-20241001084117405.htm