Several education experts said that the high unemployment rate among university graduates was warned about ten years ago, but the government has seemed to ignore it.

 Graduates seek jobs at employment exchanges in HCMC

In 2004, Vietnam had about 100 industrial zones and 500,000 labourers. According to Nguyen Minh Thuyet, former head of NA's Committee for Culture and Education for Youth, there was a need for only 5-7% of university graduates, 60% of engineers and mechanics, while the rest of the workforce was dominated by labourers.

At a NA meeting in 2004, Thuyet warned that Vietnam's market only needed 13,000-15,000 university graduates each year. He said, "The high unemployment rate is understandable because the supply of human resources has far surpassed demand." However, universities and colleges provided over 200,000 graduates, and the number has now doubled.

From then to 2010, the number of universities and colleges had sharply increased even though many did not meet requirements. More graduates remain unemployed and have to resort to manual labour.

However, Professor Nguyen Xuan Han, from the National University in Hanoi, said such a high unemployment rate begs questions about the quality of education in Vietnam. The plans and strategies were already deemed unwise. "The number of university graduates continues increasing and we still lack skilled workers. The education sector must deal with this problem quickly," he said.

Several experts said that part of the blame should be placed on the students themselves, adding that they must equip themselves with the necessary skills and pursue suitable careers instead of depending on a university degree. Meanwhile, some people have asked about the government's responsibility in building strategies and regulating human resources.

"Human resources for some departments, such as pedagogy can totally be guessed at. Many universities have been opened purely for profit, forgetting their responsibility to teach students real skills. Even public universities are trying to enroll more and more students to gain from tuition fees. The government should be stricter on these institutions," Thuyet said.

Recently, the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs announced that 72,000 bachelor and master degree holders are currently unemployed. However, other experts have said the actual number is much higher, including graduates who have to work in fields that they are not trained in.

Nguyen Duc, the owner of a internet service provider, said, "Some graduates asked us for a monthly wage of VND20 million (USD952). But when I asked if they would be worth that much they kept silent. Students should focus on their real abilities rather than degrees."