In an effort to encourage female students to enroll in science and technology-related programs, a university in Saigon recently announced that it would reduce the tuition fees for female undergrads.
As reported by Tuoi Tre, the Thu Duc-based Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology and Education just released their tuition fee policies for this year with special consideration for female students.
Specifically, new female students in eight programs such as mechatronic technology, thermo-technology and automobile technology will receive a 50% discount on school fees.
Six other majors like construction management and renewable energy will also offer a 25% discount to prospective female students. Have a look at the full list of included majors here.
“This [the discounts] is to encourage female candidates to enroll in technology-centric programs,” Principal Do Van Dung shared with the newspaper. “Nowadays, our country’s economy also has a pressing need for female personnel in tech.”
As part of a larger program to get Vietnamese schoolchildren educated and to improve national literacy rates, Vietnam has started granting tuition fee exemptions to students from specific age groups and geographic locations. At the moment, education is free for all students at public primary schools.
A recent proposal for the upcoming education reform seeks to extend this to more education levels, such as kindergarten and middle school.
[Photo via Tuoi Tre]