School of Business International University Vietnam National University - HCM

With five concentrations: Business Management, International Business, Marketing, Accountingand Finance, and Hospitality Management, the academic programs are delivered by local andinter

AUN Self Assessment Report

At Program level

School of Business International University Vietnam National University - HCM

May 2011

Part 1: INTRODUCTION

Executive Summary

This document is prepared as the Self-Assessment Report of the School of Business, InternationalUniversity, a member of Vietnam National University in Ho Chi Minh City (VNU-HCM), forAUN accreditation [Exh.12.2 Decision - Internal AUN accreditation] The report providesdetailed information on different aspects of quality, as per specified by the ASEAN UniversityNetwork, that the school have achieved so far

In general the school is believed to provide quality services to its customers – the students, asguided by a system of vision, mission, objectives and expected learning outcomes The programspecification was well designed, leading to coherent program organization and content They arefacilitated by modern didactic principles, curriculum, staff, supporting staff, infrastructure,support systems and, quality assurance mechanism These are further reinforced by the activities

of staff development, continuous evaluation and keeping abreast of feedbacks so that the qualityindicators of the students of the school has been satisfactory and it has received mostly positivecomments from all kinds stakeholders The report concludes by a section of rigorous analysis ofstrengths and weaknesses that points out the opportunities of further quality improvement

Organization of Report

The report is divided into three parts

Part One provides a brief introduction about the International University as well as its School ofBusiness, which is to be examined in this report

Part Two includes the analyses of the prescribed quality dimensions one-by-one as classified bythe accreditation body of AUN

Part Three of the report is dedicated to the review of the strengths and weaknesses of the school

Introduction of the University and School

The International University (IU) is a member of the Vietnam National University in Ho ChiMinh City (VNU-HCM), and the first public English speaking university in Vietnam Established

in 2003, IU’s vision is to become one of the nation’s leading research universities The universityfocus its efforts on cultivating student-friendly environment for the development of criticalthinking and effective application of theories learned in class, combining theories and practicalideas in various learning activities, close interaction with industry and in-depth research studieswith state-of-the-art facilities and laboratories

Across the spectrum of IU’s own and twinning programs with prestigious universities in the US,

UK, and Asia-Pacific, IU offers a wide range of high quality education options to domestic andinternational students The university has also established strong relationships with localbusinesses and industries to improve its practical training curricula and to facilitate students’career opportunities via first-hand real world experiences

In the long run, through the internationalization of academic environment, including strongacademic curricula, quality international faculty, supportive infrastructure and managementsystem, IU will develop into a multi-discipline university offering internationally-recognizeddegrees at all levels of higher education

As the largest school of IU, the School of Business is committed to provide a set of programsintegrating latest developments in management and innovative solutions to business challenges.The School of Business aims to train students for professional and ethical working attitude, usefulknowledge and practical business skills to prepare them for positions in local and internationalfirms

With five concentrations: Business Management, International Business, Marketing, Accountingand Finance, and Hospitality Management, the academic programs are delivered by local andinternational lecturers who had been trained at different foreign universities in the world Thestudents enjoy a dynamic training environment, latest study materials, advanced teachingapproaches, and comfortable facilities including a modern business simulation laboratory

Student graduated from the School of Business in the previous years have joined FDI enterprises,multinational companies as well as local corporations with positions that suit their training fromIU.

Part 2: QUALITY BY AUN-QA CRITERIA

1 Vision, Mission, Value, Objectives and Expected Learning Outcomes

Mission and Vision Statement of the International University (HCMIU), Vietnam National University in Ho Chi Minh City (VNU)

In the short term, the International University strives to become a moderately sized, oriented university, with an international work and study environment, where a strong faculty andstaff provide quality training in key subjects to a highly motivated student body of Vietnameseand international learners and whose reputation as a top-level institute of higher learning attractstop-notch learners, researchers and lecturers

research-The International University will soon create the medium-term and long-term developmentstrategies for which will introduce and implement new policies on salary, clarify systems ofprocess, provide work and function descriptions for the whole university, and establishinternational standards for the recruitment of staff and faculty

The International University will also review and improve the training program with the goal ofproviding our students with an international standard education, approaching the quality ofworld’s top universities The intermediate goal will be to match the academic standards of top tierAmerican universities, so as to permit transfers of credits and allow for future collaboration to bebased on the principles of equal cooperation and mutual benefit

The International University will establish policies to ensure that 100% of staff and faculty will

be afforded the opportunity to receive domestic and overseas professional training, with the goal

of insuring that the training provided, research conducted and administrative support given are of

Mission [Exh.1.4 Vision statement- IU Development Strategy 2006-2010, IU Development

Strategy 2011-2015]:

 To provide international quality undergraduate and postgraduate education and training inEngineering and Economics that can meet the development demands of Vietnam;

 To conduct research and apply it to the industry and the society;

 To play a key role in the development of the community

Vision [Exh.1.4 Vision statement- IU Development Strategy 2006-2010, IU Development

Strategy 2011-2015]: Within five years, the International University will become a high quality,research-oriented university with:

 Courses taught according to international standards;

 Dedicated and highly competent faculty;

 Modern facilities for instruction and research;

 Professional administration and staff;

 High quality students;

 Graduates are well trained in using modern technologies and current, best practices inindustry, and also able to work in international settings;

 A reputation as a pioneer in higher education management

Vision, Mission, Value and Objectives of HCMIU’s School of Business (SOB) [Exh.1.6

Learning Outcome vs Course Matrix – BA]

SOB designs its Vision, Mission, Value and Objectives to build a strong foundation to supportHCMIU’s effort to develop it into an international and world-class university

Vision

Inspired by the commitment of HCMIU to contributing to the development of the community andthe whole nation, the School of Business will be the school of choice for the best and thebrightest students in the nation, and for those who look for exceptional educational opportunities

in business Besides, SOB will meet the demand of people who have the need of academic andprofessional education in business Additionally, SOB will be well-known locally, regionally and

globally for its quality, innovation and leadership; for diversified and excellent faculty; and forproviding academic, professional and research opportunities to ensure the success of its people.

Mission Statement

Our distinct mission, as a part of the first international public university in Vietnam, is to providestudents with the benefits of top-quality research school [Exh.10.11 Announcement of scientificresearch for Students; [Exh.12.8 Minute of meeting for establishment scientific researchcommittee] in business We commit to bring excellence in business education; to prepare lifelonglearners for professional fulfillment in the field of business and for real-world success; and todevelop future leaders [Exh.6.12 Regulations - Evaluation of self-development students] of ournation through supportive and quality faculty, staff and academic environment Students aregiven opportunities to work with some of the nation’s best faculties to advance their arts andhumanities, knowledge, and professions

Value Statement

As a part of the first public international university in Vietnam, the School of Businessunderstands and honors the public trust placed on us We believe that the following valuesexemplify our School:

 Respect: We respect ourselves and others

 Integrity: We strive to maintain honesty and truthfulness; and to act in ethical ways.

 Responsibility: We make decisions wisely after acknowledging the context and

considering the consequences of any course of action

 Diversity: We embrace the diversity of individuals, ideas and expressions

 Excellence: We value high standards for teaching, learning, and inquiry.

 Leadership: We lead others toward excellence through trust, respect and encouragement;

and demonstrate leadership through collaboration, empathy and tenacity

Objectives

 Maintain an excellent quality of teaching and learning at both undergraduate and graduatelevels

 Retain and recruit high qualified faculty and staff to support the teaching, research andservice mission at SOB

 Innovate and enhance the learning environment to attract excellent students

 Strive for our leadership role in education and develop future leaders for the nation

 Collaborate with the industry to prepare students real-world knowledge and experience aswell as to pursue business researches for the benefit of the community and the country

Expected Learning Outcomes [Exh.1.6 Learning Outcome vs Course Matrix – BA; Exh.1.5

Learning Outcomes]

1 Business Knowledge

Upon completing the program, students will be able to:

a Master the key frameworks, models, and skills that reflect the body of knowledge in theirmajor, and will apply discipline-based habits of analytical thinking to problems andopportunities

b Be skilled in the analysis of both qualitative information and quantitative data They will

be able to frame problems, apply appropriate analytical techniques, and draw validconclusions and recommendations

2 Communication Skills:

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

c to synthesize and summarize information and to professionally communicate theiranalyses, arguments, and recommendations to a variety of audiences

d be skilled in written, oral, and visual communication and will be able to effectivelychoose communication methods that are appropriate to the topic, objective, and setting

3 Quantitative Skills

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

e Understand, analyze and use quantitative data to make business decisions and report tostakeholders

f Identify quantitative characteristics of a problem, to examine and interpret numerical dataand to analyze numerical data to derive conclusions.

4 Critical Thinking Skills

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

g Evaluate, analyze and interpret information to solve problems and make businessdecisions

h Interpret and evaluate unstructured situations; to define the problem; to apply theories toambiguous situations and to draw conclusions and implement solutions

5 Technology

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

i Demonstrate proficiency in the use of information technology

j Students will use information systems to select, manipulate and process data in ameaningful way in order to make business decisions and use software tools to solveaccounting, financial and quantitative problems

6 Ethics

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

k Understand and evaluate ethical issues and situations to make business decisions

l Recognize ethical problems in both domestic and international business contexts identifyalternatives and make appropriate ethical choices

7 Multicultural and Diversity

m Students, particularly those who pursue the degree in international business concentration,will develop an awareness and understanding of the cultural issues that impact businessoperations in a global society

n Students will have a perspective, sensitivity and understanding of the global businessesand global society; use their communications skills to resolve challenges [Exh.1.6Learning Outcome vs Course Matrix – BA].

outcomesGeneric Knowledge Mathematics, Social Science,

History, Culture, EnvironmentScience

e, f, m, n,

Generic Skills Communication, Computer

skills, Critical thinking, Teamwork, Self-regulating, problemsolving, Self-learning

c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j

Specific Knowledge Understanding of key functions

of business – accounting,finance, international business,marketing, management,operations, information andstatistics

a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j

Specific Skills Ability to use technology to

solve business problems

j, k

Attitudes Social ethical and responsibility,

Professional and ethicalresponsibility

2 Program Content

The content of the BA Program is developed in relation to the vision of university for being theleading research university in the country In particular, the Program content primarily reflectsthe objectives [Exh.1.4 Vision, Mission statement- IU Strategy 2006-2010, IU DevelopmentStrategy 2011-2015] set above to provide learners with firm basic knowledge discipline andtheories in Business Administration as well as to help the learners pursue their particular interest.Therefore the curriculum content is developed as a track that is directed towards the acquisition

of knowledge of Business Administration [Exh.2.1 Academic Calendar year 2010-2011]

Distribution of Contents

Since 2008, the content of the Program [Exh.1.8 Decision of BA Curriculum Establishment] hasbeen structured in an integrated curriculum as illustrated in Table 2.1 The curriculum structure ischaracterized by four parts of education process which enable the students to learn various skillsand knowledge in design to develop their basic capabilities in Business Administration discipline.These four parts are: General Education, Foundation Requirements and Elective Core courses,Concentration Majors and Thesis Writing Beside these parts, as required by the Ministry ofEducation and Training [Exh.2.3 Minister of Education program framework; Exh.3.9 BAAcademic curriculum -Version 5], the graduates must take the course on Military Education andreceive the Certificate for this

Table 2.1 Curriculum structure

+ Certificate of Military Education (required)

+ Physical Education

General Education Requirements

All colleges and universities include a set of common courses in their curricula whichprovide exposure to a wide variety of subjects considered to be necessary for the educatedindividual At the IU this is known as the General Education requirement and consists ofseveral areas such as mathematics, philosophy, natural sciences, social sciences, legalsystem It consists of 62 credits for General Education and 31 credits for FoundationRequirements All students at IU must complete the General education and FoundationRequirement coursework in order to graduate [Exh.2.3 Minister of Education program

framework; Exh.3.9 BA Academic curriculum -Version 5] This coursework is generally

foundational, meaning it is taken during the first 2 years of any program Freshmenespecially focus on general education coursework

Table 2.2 General Education requirements

10 Vietnamese History and Culture

11 Introduction to Vietnamese Legal

15 Quantitative Methods for Business 3 4

11 Physical Education

12 Military Education

Foundation requirements

The foundation requirements are core subjects for all BA undergraduate students It consists of 10courses (or 31 credits) The students will take all of those subjects till the end of the junior year.All subjects are of 3 credit courses

Table 2.3 Foundation requirements

1 Introduction to Business

3 Management Information Systems

8 Strategy Formulation and

9 Production and Operations

Quantitative Methods, Statistic for Business

Major concentration courses

At the third year of the BA program, students might choose from five areas ofconcentration which the School of Business – The International University provides asfollows:

For the Business Administration Program:

(i) Business Management,

(ii) International Business

(iii) Marketing

(iv) Hospitality Management

For the Finance and Banking Program:

(v) Finance and Accounting

All the concentrations consist of concentration requirements and elective courses Electivecourses can be changed to meet the requirements of industry and the availability ofexperts

Business Management

This concentration is an excellent preparation part for students who wish to studyadministrative sciences or are interested in general management and management traineepositions Business Management concentration provides undergraduate students withnecessary knowledge and skills to understand and undertake various managementpositions in industry

After graduation, the students are expected to understand and apply their knowledge onindividual and organizational behavior in management practice, master leadership skills,decision-making skills, other skills on operating, human resource planning, business-

The graduates are able to develop competencies and master general skills at least in fiveareas of business management including: operation management, marketing management,human resource management, financial management, and international businessmanagement In addition, the students will learn how to implement various functions of amanager and solve managerial problems relating to planning, organizing, leading,motivating, coordinating, as well as controlling Concentration requirements as well aselective courses of business management are designed and available to those interested inthis specialized area

Furthermore, Business Management also focuses on the behavior of individuals andgroups within formal organizations, with particular emphasis upon the application oftheory and research to management practice Topics receiving primary emphasis includeleadership and motivation of personnel, decision making, the adaptation of organizations

to their environment and the planning for and use of human resources in both the publicand private sectors Table 2.4 illustrates the concentration requirements for the BusinessManagement concentration

Table 2.4 Concentration requirements of BM

1 BA154IU Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management 3

Table 2.5 provides the elective courses of Business Management as follows:

Table 2.5: Electives of BM

International economics and finance, international marketing and international businessstrategies

International Business focuses on the cross-cultural psychology and multinationalmanagement, International Business, Organizational Design and Environment,International Trade, International Marketing and Finance

The graduates of this concentration might start with an entry-level managementexperience, perhaps working as a generalist in charge of a small group of people, who areinvolved in business transactions between and within countries; work on the logistics ofinternational trade; or be involved in investments made in foreign markets

Table 2.6 Concentration requirements of IB

Elective courses can be changed to meet the requirements of industry and the availability ofexperts The semester of elective course offer is subject to change

Table 2.7 Electives of IB

2 BA154IU Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management 3

4 BA155IU Multi-Cultural Management

11 BA180IU Special Research in International Business 3

Marketing

The concentration in Marketing provides undergraduate students with the analytical andtechnical tools, as well as a strong conceptual framework, needed to understand consumerand organizational buying behavior and strategic marketing processes These processesinclude market research, segmentation, targeting, positioning, integrated marketingcommunications, and relationship building

Students will develop competencies and skills in: identifying customer needs and wants;making decisions about which markets organizations should serve; designing product,service and program offerings for these markets; planning and implementing strategies tocommunicate with and sell to these markets; and creating value through profitablerelationships with customers as well as channel partners, suppliers etc

After graduation, the students are able to utilize various theoretical models and analyzingtools needed to understand consumer and business behavior, to be able to undertakepositions in strategic marketing management, including marketing research, marketsegmentation, product positioning, media strategies, public relation and brand

competencies and skills in identifying customer demand, analyzing and choosing targetmarkets, developing new products, operating distribution channels, setting up andimplementing advertising and media communication strategies, etc

The marketing concentration is also appropriate for students who plan for careers in fieldssuch as (a) selling and sales management, (b) retail merchandising or retail operations, (c)market research and analysis, and (d) marketing communications Topics covered inmarketing courses include how to conduct market research and analyze buyers, how toprice goods and services, how to sell, how to advertise and promote, and how to develop amarketing plan

Table 2.8 Concentration requirements of MK

Elective courses can be changed to meet the requirements of industry and the availability ofexperts The semester of elective course offer is subject to change

Table 2.9: Electives of MK

Hospitality Management

Concentration in Hospitality Management provides the learners with all knowledge andskills on tourism and hotel business management [Exh.1.9 Decision - HospitalityManagement Curriculum establishment] The program enables students to well recognizecurrent trends and future development of tourism and hotel industry in the context ofglobalization, master various types of businesses in the hospitality industry and know how

to organize and manage business operations in tourism, restaurants, hotel and newbusiness starts Following the program curriculum, the students will learn how to developtheir professional skills and careers in the hospitality management field to start their self-learning process after graduation

Graduates of the Hospitality Management concentration can work effectively when takingthe positions such as Food and Beverage managers at various hotels and five-starrestaurants, Sales managers, Business Strategy planners at Hotels and Tourismbusinesses, Human Resource managers, Accountants, Financial analysts, Marketingmanagers etc… in the Hospitality Management field

After graduation, the students will be able to apply their learned knowledge and skills in

internationally They are able to well recognize trends and impressive development ofhospitality industry in the context of globalization, which enables them to master variousbusiness types of the hospitality industry and specialized skills in hospitality management,

to manage and organize business operations at tourist companies, restaurants and hotels.They are also able to develop their own new businesses, to plan business strategies andpolicies for restaurants and hotels, and to develop their special skills in hospitalitymanagement through their whole process of learning at the school and taking internship.Concentration requirement part of Hospitality consists of six courses equivalent to 18credits, which covers an introduction to the Hospitality industry as well as variousfunctions of management in the field (Table 2.10)

Table 2.10 Concentration Requirements of Hospitality Management

Elective courses can be changed to meet the requirements of industry and the availability ofexperts The semester of elective course offer is subject to change

Table 2.11 Electives of Hospitality Management

No

Course

Finance & Accounting

The graduates will be able to understand and utilize their knowledge about the accountingsystems of Vietnam, the Unites States and the Unites Kingdom They will know how touse theoretical models and analyzing tools to evaluate a business’s financial performance,

to make various decisions relating to financial issues in Vietnam as well as abroad Thereare three closely interrelated financial areas of decision making: financial management,business accounting and investment

The concentration in Finance and Accounting also provides undergraduate students withthe analytical tools and conceptual framework needed to evaluate financial transactionsand firms, make financial decisions or to work in the banking system The academicprogram allows students to understand finance from three interrelated perspectives: 1)Financial management related to capital budgeting, financial structure, financial analysis,working capital management, and dividend policy; 2) investment and portfoliomanagement related to the valuation of stocks, bonds, and derivative contracts and the

issuance of and investment in financial instruments by banking organizations withemphasis on the consequence of interest rates and interest rate structure on valuation andrisk

The graduating students can apply for professional positions such as a credit analyst,equity analyst, or financial analyst with governmental agencies, for-profit corporations,and investment banks Finance also provides an excellent foundation for graduate study inbusiness, economics, public policy, and law

Table 2.12 Concentration requirements of Finance and Accounting

Elective courses can be changed to meet the requirements of industry and the availability

of experts The semester of elective course offer is subject to change

Table 2.13 Electives of Finance and Accounting

www.hcmiu.edu.vn/business, while the more general information is also available at theInternational University website http://www.hcmiu.edu.vn

The BA program was first established in 2004, and managed by the School of Businesswhich is one of four schools of the International University –VNU [Exh.3.12 Schoolestablishment-Decision] So far, there have been changes in the structure and content ofthe Program which reflects various changes in academic business administrationdisciplines, changes in the labor market and changes in the society [Exh.4.1 Proposal for

changing Curriculum of Banking-Finance – 2010; Exh.4.2 Proposal for changing curriculum of

BA 2010; Exh.4.3 Proposal for revising Curriculum of BA- 3rd 2010; Exh.4.4 MOM for revisingthe Curriculum of Accounting and Finance-2010] The BA Program is characterized by thecurriculum which consists of a set of courses aiming at producing graduates of BachelorDegree The further development of the BA Program reflects gradual shifting fromtraditional business courses emphasizing on professional disciplines into more industry-oriented education and training

Educational Objectives

The set objective of the BA Program [Exh.3.9 BA Academic curriculum -Version 5] is toproduce the graduates of being critical, creative and able to work in various businessconcentrations such as: Business Management, International Business, Marketing,Hospitality Management and Finance and Banking The Graduates are able to possessleadership skills and communication skills as well As stated in the vision of the School ofBusiness The BA program has been developed to prepare graduates with the ability tomaintain a life-long learning, ability to adapt the real world, to maintain norms and ethicsand to have leadership potentials [Exh.6.27 Internship program guideline; Exh.6.28Internship Announcement; Exh.6.7 Proposal for payment of student internship 2007] Toachieve these objectives, the BA Program offers various courses which provide learnerswith firm basic knowledge discipline and theories in Business Administration Inaddition, elective courses [Exh.6.10 Specialization registration Form] can help thelearners to pursue their particular interests within their fields

Award and Program Requirements

The BA Program is designed to provide academic education in the discipline of BusinessAdministration within four-year period or eight semesters The organization of the BAProgram uses credit unit system There is a minimum of 138 credit units [Exh.3.9 BAAcademic curriculum -Version 5] that should be completed by the students, consisting ofGeneral Education, Foundation Requirement Cores, Majors courses and Thesis writing.These courses are distributed systematically across eight semesters to provide systematic

learning experience towards the objectives of the Program Upon the completion of therequired credit units with the minimum Grade Point Average (GPA) of 50/100, thegraduates are awarded the Bachelor Degree in Business Administration or Finance andBanking [Exh.17.2 List of graduate 2009-2010, Decision].

Admission to the BA Program

The entry to the BA Program is done through various selection processes in which highschool graduates participate in the national university entrance exam In this exam thecandidates can choose to take exam on either A Bloc which consists of Mathematics,Physics and Chemistry or D Bloc: Mathematics, Literature Composition and English Theselection process is managed by the international university and the detail description onthe selection process described by the Ministry of Education and Training

However, admission to the program is also based on the non-exam basis applicable toforeign high school graduates [Exh.2.15 Decision of enrollment of Korea students; List ofKorea students] or those Vietnamese citizens who have graduated from foreign highschools The selection procedure is based on the academic performance at their highschools and interviews [Exh.2.14 Minute of meeting of enrollment students]

After the entrance exam, successful students will enter into a comprehensive English testfor the class grouping purpose However, this English test is not considered as a strictcondition for the admission to the BA program

Teaching and Learning Strategy

The contents of the BA Program are delivered to the students using student-centeredlearning approach, which is considered one of the good ways to promote graduates’capabilities of lifelong learning Most of the credits taken by the students are mainly incourses at auditoriums and class rooms In addition, several courses require the studentsstudy at laboratories [Exh.11.1 pictures of Classroom, Laboratory; Exh.3.4 Syllabus ofMarketing; Exh.3.5 Syllabus of International Business; Exh.3.6 Syllabus of General

Education & Foundation; Exh.3.7 Syllabus of Business Management; Exh.3.8 Syllabus ofAccounting & Finance] and practical internship Exh.6.27 Internship program guideline;Exh.6.28 Internship Announcement; Exh.6.7 Proposal for payment of student internship2007]

The teaching and learning strategy is designed to enable students to gain businessknowledge and skills, which is the core content of the Program More details on theteaching and learning strategy in the Program are described in Figure 3.1

Figure 3.1: Curriculum structure of the BA Program – the International University

[Exh.3.9 BA Academic curriculum -Version 5]

Relevance to Professional Bodies

The BA program of the School of Business has been developed based on the following sources:

- The visions and missions of HCMIU and SoB [Exh.1.4 Vision statement- IU Strategy2006-2010, IU Development Strategy 2011-2015]:

- The objectives of the BA Program of SoB [Exh.1.8 Decision of BA CurriculumEstablishment]

- The common required competences and standard criteria set by the Ministry of Educationand Training which are applied to all other universities [Exh.2.3 Minister of Educationprogram framework]

- The BA programs of some famous universities abroad, originally based on that of RutgersUniversity (New Jersey – the US), SUNY Binghamton (New York – the US) [Exh.2.2Nott program 2010 (010710); Nott program 2009 (020909); New South Wales-Curriculum (070710); Houston program 2010 Curriculum (020510)]; [Exh.3.10 Brochure

of SOB]

- The feedback of the industry about their current requirements

- The feedback of students and alumni about the quality of the program

This ensures the relevance of the program with the current international and national system ofBusiness Administration education and practice

Accreditation

The accreditation of the BA Program is conducted nationally by the Ministry of Education andTraining which is responsible for quality assurance process for all higher education studyprograms in Vietnam

In view of improving our program’s accreditation, we planned to register a membership ofAACSB from July, 2011 [Exh.3.11 proposal of applying AACSB membership for SOB]

4 Program organization

Multi-major curriculum is the main characteristics of our BA Program, which comprises of majorrequirement courses as the core contents of the curriculum, supported by various general andbusiness foundation cores and electives [Exh.3.9 BA Academic curriculum -Version 5] Such astructure of curriculum was developed based on the understanding that Business Administration

is a discipline that covers various aspects of doing business including Business Management,Marketing, International Business, Finance and Accounting This enables learners to be able tosolve various business problems and issues In addition, the practical internship courses ofBusiness Administration that the students take in the third or fourth year requires the integration

of various knowledge of economic, social, historical and cultural fields applied to businessadministration The overall structure of the Multi-major BA curriculum is presented in theSection 2

Historical Development of Curriculum Structure

The BA curriculum was firstly developed in 2003 the early time when the University wasestablished So far, the curriculum has been adjusted and revised three times in 2006, 2008 and

2010 The changes were done in response to various contextual demands, including the changes

in national higher education system, the changes on the nature of education and the development

of Business Administration discipline and profession

In the early period of 2004, the BA Program [Exh.4.13 Curriculum BA 2004] was aimed atproducing graduates as Bachelors in Business Administration and characterized by heavyworkload for the students and the problem of overlap among some courses In particular, the totalnumber of credits required for Business Administration discipline was 185 and there was anoverlap in contents of the International Business Finance and International Investment courses(see Appendix A) Therefore the curriculum structure needed to be revised to avoid a rigidlystructured program of study

The first revision of the curriculum was done in 2006 [Exh.4.12 Curriculum BA 2006], whichaimed at replacing the courses that have too much overlap contents, changing the contents ofsome courses The introduction of Semester Credit System [Exh.6.36 Academic regulation undercredit system] in 2004 allows more flexible structure of subject taking, in which students mayprogress through their study depending on their abilities and performance The students wererequired to complete 161 credits normally within four years or eight semesters This system

allows bright students to take more credits than normally suggested and as a result have shorterperiod of study However, although the Curriculum has been organized in credit-based system, ingeneral the curriculum structure was still considered to put heavy work load on the students

A significant change in the curriculum structure happened in 2008, which showed the decrease inthe number of credits required The total number of credits required to be completed by studentsdecreased from 161 credits to 138 credits

During the period from 2004 to 2009, the further revision of curriculum structure was the results

of some assistances and advise provided by some professors coming from foreign universities.The School of Business invited professors from Seattle University – the Unites States (ProfessorBarbara Parker and Professor Peter Raven in 2006) The experts were invited as an externalevaluator to review the existing curriculum

The reviews by these experts become valuable contribution for the Program in the furtherdevelopment of its curriculum structure, which happened in 2008 The 2008 curriculum structurebecomes simplified compared to previous 2004 curriculum With many similar subjects aremerged, creating slimmer, simplified curriculum structure It allows students to learn the coursesmore effectively

Table 4.1 illustrates the changes of curriculum structure from 2004, 2006, and 2008 showing thedevelopment of the curriculum into more simplified structure

Table 4.1 Changes in the Curriculum Structure during the period 2004-2008

Type

Total credits

The structure of 2008 curriculum is a result of careful consideration on the higher educationprogram at the university level as well as the reference to Business Administration competencefollowing the Degree number 36/2004/QD-BGD&DT dated October 25, 2004 by MoET Thecourses with the total number of 138 credits are distributed into 8 semesters, with each semesternormally comprising of 21 credits as maximum.

During the first year of the program, students take basic university courses that equip them withbasic knowledge necessary as the higher education students, which is also called GeneralEducation Requirements (see table 2.2 of section 2) [Exh.3.9 BA Academic curriculum -Version5]

In addition to the General Requirement courses, first year students are required to take AcademicEnglish as basic university courses All of these courses are managed centrally by the university’sOffice of Academic Affairs, the Department of English and other schools The students of thisprogram are also required to take a course of Military Education This course is managed by anorganization which is outside the International University and belongs to VNU HCM

Detailed courses for the following years of the BA program are described in section 2 and theAppendices

The structure indicates clear relationship among the courses It also provides a clear description

on how the first year program provides foundation training for the following years For example,the students must complete courses of Microeconomics and Macroeconomics in the GeneralEducation part, which become prerequisites courses for studying International Trade in theFoundation Requirement part Business Computing Skills must be completed before the studentsregister for Management Information System or E-Commerce Meanwhile, electives might beconsidered as broadening students’ knowledge Some contents of the electives might be useful tosupport their learning in their major fields, while some contents might become an introduction fortheir further development of both professional career and postgraduate education For instance,those who choose Marketing concentration can register the electives that enable them deeplywiden their knowledge into four fields: Product Development, Advertising, Public Relation andPromotion

Current Curriculum revised since 2010

There were significant changes [Exh.4.1 Proposal for changing Curriculum of Banking-Finance –2010; Exh.4.2 Proposal for changing curriculum of BA 2010; Exh.4.3 Proposal for revisingCurriculum of BA- 3rd 2010; Exh.4.4 MOM for revising the Curriculum of Accounting andFinance-2010; BA Curriculum 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010; Exh.3.1 Minute of meeting forrevise the syllabus of three majors] in the curriculum structure of the School of Business in 2010.

To meet the increasing demand from the industry, the School of Business started to offer twomajors: Business Administration and Finance and Banking with two separate programs

The Business Administration Program consists of four concentrations: Business Management,International Business, Marketing and Hospitality Management

The Finance and Banking Program has Finance and Accounting concentration

The course of Environmental Science is added in the group of General Education to provideknowledge of the natural environment to the students

Referring to table 4.2 below, all the course learning outcomes have close relation to the expectedstandard outputs of the SOB’s program as a whole

Table 4.2: Learning Outcome and Standard Output Matrix

Course

Standard output

Political theory courses:

The principle of Marxism –

Leninism



Revolutionary Way of the

Vietnam Communist Party



Social Sciences, Humanities - Art

World Economic Geography  

Languages

Mathematics - Computer Science -

Natural Science - Technology -

Core Requirements in Business

Management (italics are the elective)

Entrepreneurship and Small

Business Management

Logistics and Supply chain

Management

Core Requirements in International

Business (italics are the elective)

Core Requirements in Marketing

(italics are the elective)

Advertising and Public

Core Requirements in Finance -

Accounting (italics are the elective)

Graduate Internships and Thesis

Analytical and Critical thinking

Communication and Teamwork

Continuing Self-Development and Perspective

C6 Professional Attitudes and ethics

5 Didactic Concept

Student Centered Learning

Following the curriculum structured with its multi-major nature, there is a need to outlineteaching and learning methods that are suitable with the nature of the curriculum tosupport the achievement of expected learning objectives

The designation of didactic method for the Program should be in accordance to universitystrategies to improve educational and teaching quality based on research to achieveexcellence In addition, there is also a mission of the School of Business to preparegraduates with lifelong learning skills and adaptable to labor market Therefore itbecomes necessary that the didactic methods are formulated to promote graduates withexcellent quality and abilities for lifelong learning [Exh.1.8 Decision of BA CurriculumEstablishment] Lifelong learning means learning to know, learning to do, learning to livetogether and learning to be Based on such an idea of education, the BA Program hasformulated student centered - learning as its major approach on the delivery of programcontent for the students

In particular for Business Administration, the formulation of didactic methods reflects therequirement in general consideration of Vietnam National University – VNU HCM Citythat education must prepare graduates to be able to give solutions to current practicalbusiness situations or problems [Exh.5.2 Student assignments], to predict the present andthe future changes of business environment as well as to plan for their careerdevelopment The changing nature of society and business environment would meangrowing complexities of problems and issues This requires the education to develop thestudents’ ability to learn not only for now but also for the future

Student centered learning requires students to be actively involved and responsible totheir own learning, while the role of academic staffs is more on facilitating the learningprocess The Program implements the student-centered learning as its approach in

developing students and graduates’ ability to learn how to learn, thus enabling them toadapt to any future situation including when facing real world problems and beinginvolved in labor market The approach also promotes students’ soft skills [Exh.8.15 Planfor students to have abroad visiting VN-TL], including communication skills,collaborative skills and development of mature attitudes in learning and at their futureworks In this way, student centered learning has become a reflection of the Programobjectives in improving the employability of the graduates beyond the undergraduatestudies.

Various methods have been applied within the implementation of 2008 revisedcurriculum The methods particularly applied in delivering courses involve case-study,class and group discussion in which the students are given business situation problems orissues and are required to work in groups to find solutions for them In order to come upwith appropriate solutions to the problems, the students must read the materials and textbooks carefully at home and combine knowledge of other learned courses The learningactivities in the class rooms is designed to evolve around problem based learning throughassignment or group projects, in which students are required to understand problems andissues, develop strategies for solving the problems, searching for necessary informationand other independent learning activities

Some activities are for individual works while others required collaborative works in agroup Facilitation is provided by academic staffs through tutorial or discussion, review ofprogress in the presentation [Exh.3.4 Syllabus of Marketing; Exh.3.5 Syllabus ofInternational Business; Exh.3.6 Syllabus of General Education & Foundation; Exh.3.7Syllabus of Business Management; Exh.3.8 Syllabus of Accounting & Finance] In thisway, the process of learning as well as the development on individual projects areprimarily directed by students and not dictated by the academic staffs This is particularlydifferent from older approach of teacher centered learning in which students tend to waitfor staff instruction and to do as they are told The acquisition of knowledge and skills bythe students after following the student- centered learning process is reflected through

Project Management, Brand Management, Entrepreneurship and Small BusinessManagement, etc, require the students to work in teams, conduct class presentations based

on their self-research results supported by the teacher advising

It can be seen that, most of the courses are delivered through various methods such asclass and group discussion, presentation and project works [Exh.5.1 Sample of studentassignments],; lectures are also conducted in most courses, however, the aim of thelecture is primarily to outline important points of course materials and usually student arerequired to expand their knowledge through independent works

The success of student centered learning method much depend on the abilities ofacademic staffs to act as facilitators of the learning process This requires understanding

on the role of facilitators as compared to teachers in older learning methods The idea ofstudent centered learning, along with practical guidelines on how to implement it, havebeen shared since the beginning of 2008 curriculum through annual seminars for allteaching staffs The implement of the above teaching learning strategies is continuallyevaluated at the end of the semester through evaluation mechanism by students, which isalso discussed further later (section 13, part: structured student evaluation) Annually, theSchool invites guest speakers who are experts in the fields to attend the staff seminars toshare their experiences and give their advice on teaching methods as well as the researchskills Exh.10.13 Seminar "How did they succeed?"; Exh.15.4 List of seminars]

Uses of Computer

The use of computer has been implemented in the study program in all courses.Computers are available at all the classes [Exh.11.1 pictures of Library 1, Library 2,Coffee Shop, cafeteria, Classroom, Laboratory] in the university They are used as a tool

in facilitating students’ learning process Students use the class computers and varioussoftware for their individual and group presentations [Exh.5.2 Students assignments],running business simulation projects, including analysis of facts and problems,development of conceptual ideas, group project development and presentation Thesoftware that is commonly used by the students included business communication,

business computing skills, and power-point as tools for presentation In addition, studentsand staffs also utilize the use of computers to search data for their study during theirlearning process, especially to obtain various kinds of information, including backgroundliterature, search for previous studies and other online information This becomesparticularly important in order to catch up with the recent development of business field

in other parts of the world

All the courses also use online mode of communication to facilitate learning process Forexample, the students can use the university’s Blackboard software to submit their homeassignment work or down load learning materials, exercises as well as contact theacademic staffs for their concerns and getting advice On the other hand, to enable thestudents to use computers effectively, Business Computing Skill course is offered for all

of them

Research-Oriented Curriculum

The university has started its vision to become the country’s leading Research University.The norms of a research university are outlined in its vision The research-basededucation includes the delivery of learning materials based on recent literature andresearch findings, promoting students’ active and critical thinking as well as promotingstudents’ curiosity and thinking based on research methodology and sharpening students’analytical skills

All the academic staffs are required to do annual research study [Exh.15.2 Registerresearch form; Exh.5.3 Decision - Choosing research committee], which are therequirements of the university’s development strategy To promote the research activities

of the academic staffs, their research activities are taken into account when designing thecompensation system and the benefits policies

Those aspects of a research university are further implemented in everyday learningprocess for all courses In some courses such as Business Research methods, Brand