Materialistic generation 

The survey was jointly carried out by the municipal Department of Education and Training, Save the Children and the Citi Foundation.

Some of the revelations of the survey were quite surprising. The results showed that parents give their school-aged children an average weekly allowance of VND50,000-300,000 (USD2.38-14.28). Around 36% of students who attend international high schools, such as Le Quy Don and Marie Curie, are given VND3-5 million (USD142.6-237.68) per month, around 25% receive as much as VND500,000 (USD32.76) a day.

Despite the high allowances, one-third of surveyed students claimed that the money they received was insufficient and sometimes had to borrow from friends. 

The survey also revealed that students from well-off families spent 44% of their money on clothes and make-up; 35% on entertainment and only 21% items or services related to study. 

One girl in the 11th grade shared, “When I was small, I used to wear what my mother bought for me, but now I want to choose my own clothes. I often buy expensive clothes and shoes, if not. I really don't want to look unstylish.” In spite of getting over VND400,000 (USD19) from her parents every week, she usually overspends and has to ask for more.

Parents replace care with money

An interview conducted by Save the Children with parents of students at Marie Curie and Nguyen Du high schools showed that parents valued the importance of teaching their children the value of money, but did not pay enough attention on the actual spending habits of their kids. 

Tran Thi Hue, of Save the Children, said that parents are of two opposing opinions when it comes to giving children money. While many parents prefer not to give their children any control in money management, others simply hand over allowances without any oversight as to how it's spent. 

The survey also revealed that only 31% of pupils have ever talked with parents about responsible money management. A number of students expressed the opinion that their parents were simply too busy to supervise their spending. While quite aware of the amount of money they received, these students did not show much consciousness of where or how it was generated.