Up to 30% of university graduates are attending vocational schools and additional courses after being unable to find a job in their chosen profession.

Students interview for courses at Saigontourist Hospitality College 

A graduate from the department of accounting said that after months of being unemployed, she decided to enroll in a course in restaurant management. Another graduate from the department of business administration also signed up for the same course because his application letters had gone unanswered many times.

Tran Van Hung, headmaster of Saigontourist Hospitality College said that among the 2,000 students enrolled in freshman year, 600 are bachelor degree holders. Many other schools also said about 30% of their newly recruited students are university graduates, most of them are unemployed and want to study other professions for better chances in job seeking.

According to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, there were 72,000 unemployed graduates by the end of 2013. Meanwhile, the universities' enrollment target is still increasing.

Dang Van Sang, headmaster of Anh Sang College, said this is a waste of money and human resources. "It takes at least VND100 million (USD4,760) for a student at a four-year university to complete. Many graduates are already saddled with debts when they finish their courses." he said. It's a waste when students abandon the knowledge they learned to study other professions in order to find a job.

Experts blamed the rising university enrollment targets. The universities take in a lot of students without calculating the market demands. In addition, weak career consultancy and people's highly-regarded importance of university degrees are said to be the causes of a redundant workforce.

Most high school students often choose to study 'hot' departments such as business and banking. Meanwhile, some students are not aware of their own desires and ability and chose the wrong careers.

Sang said the government must calculate the needs for human resources in each career in order to avoid redundancy.