Draft regulation on conditions to recognise foreign diplomas issued

Illustrative image. (Photo source suckhoedoisong.vn)

Hanoi - The Ministry of Education and Training has just issued a draft regulation on the conditions and procedures for the recognition of foreign educational qualifications/diplomas for use in Vietnam.

According to the draft, the recognition is the determination of the level of education and training qualifications stated on the diploma according to the education system of the country where the foreign educational institution is headquartered.

In case of compatibility, equivalent recognition is given to diplomas in the national education system of Vietnam or the level of qualification according to the National Qualifications Framework of Vietnam.

The recognition of diplomas includes the level of education and training qualifications that correspond to one of the following systems – the national education system of Vietnam or the National Qualifications Framework of Vietnam; the UNESCO International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED 2011); the education system or national qualifications framework of the country where the foreign educational institution is headquartered.

The recognition of diplomas is carried out according to the needs of the diploma holder. The diploma holder is responsible for the legality of the diploma.

To be recognised in Vietnam, the diploma of a foreign educational institution must meet one of the three conditions.

Either the educational programme must be quality-assured by the agency authorised to assess the quality of education in the country where the foreign educational institution is headquartered or recognised by the agency authorised to assess education in the country where the foreign educational institution is headquartered.

Or, the foreign educational institution must be authorised by the agency responsible for education in the country where the institution is headquartered to provide education and award diplomas, or recognised by the agency authorised to assess the quality of education in the country where the institution is headquartered and its diplomas recognised by the education agency of that country.

Or the diploma falls within the scope of application of agreements on equivalent diplomas or mutual recognition of diplomas, or relevant international conventions on diplomas that Vietnam has signed and recognised according to the terms of the agreements, conventions, or international treaties.

Regarding diplomas issued by educational institutions operating in a country different than where the institution is headquartered (including Vietnam), recognition is granted when the educational institution is permitted by the authorised education agency of the two countries to open a branch, provide education or approve cooperation and training partnerships as regulated; carry out training activities according to regulations on cooperation, investment in education and according to the approval of the authorised agency while complying with regulations.

For training programmes in partnership with foreign countries carried out in Vietnam, Vietnamese educational institutions must confirm in writing that the partnership programme meets the regulations on training partnerships and is in line with the approval document for the partnership training issued by relevant authorities.

The recognition of diplomas issued by foreign educational institutions for learners affected by war, natural disasters, epidemics, fires, and other force majeure cases is decided by the Minister of Education and Training.

The two authorised units for diploma recognition are the Director of the Diploma Recognition Centre under the Department of Quality Management (Ministry of Education and Training), who recognises diplomas of university education levels, and the Director of the provincial/municipal Department of Education and Training who recognises diplomas of completion of secondary high & high school programmes and certificates of completion of general education programmes.

The authorised agency must process the application dossier for diploma recognition within five working days. In case the dossier is incomplete or does not meet the requirements, the responsible agency must notify and provide specific instructions for the applicant to revise and supplement the dossier.

Within a period of 15 working days, the authorised agency for diploma recognition will return the results of the diploma recognition process to the applicant.

If there is a need to clarify information regarding the diploma from a foreign educational institution or the authorised agency of the foreign country, the time limit for returning the results must not exceed 30 working days from the date of receiving the application dossier for diploma recognition, and the applicant must be notified of this process.

The draft is currently open for public feedback until August 12, 2023.