Alumni of the English Faculty at a major university in southern Vietnam shared their insight into developing one’s personal growth path at a faculty reunion in Ho Chi Minh City on Saturday.

The Faculty of English Linguistics and Literature (EF) at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Social Sciences and Humanities (USSH), host the 2019 EFAIR festival at their main campus in District 1 on Saturday.

The day-long event, themed “Embracing Global Values; Taking on Digital Challenges,” is meant to provide an opportunity for alumni and current enrollees to mingle while connecting the faculty’s students with potential employers.

This year’s EFAIR kicked off at 7:30 am with an opening ceremony for the faculty’s 2019-20 academic year, joined by hundreds of students from undergraduate and graduate programs.

Students attend the 2019-20 academic year opening ceremony of the English Faculty at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Ho Chi Minh City, September 7, 2019. Photo: Tuan Son / Tuoi Tre News

Dr. Le Hoang Dung, dean of EF, and Pham Hoang Khang, who scored the highest in the year’s National High School Exam among the faculty’s freshmen, took park in a traditional flag transfer ritual to welcome first-year students.

"You all should be very confident that you have made the right choice to become members of the EF community, where you will have opportunities to work, to study, and to do research with very dynamic instructors and staff who will guide you with their heart and mind throughout the years," Dr. Dung said in his opening remarks.

Dr. Le Hoang Dung, dean of the English Faculty at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Ho Chi Minh City, delivers the opening remarks at the 2019-20 academic year opening ceremony, September 7, 2019. Photo: Tuan Son / Tuoi Tre News

The ceremony was followed by a panel discussion where host and guests - who are all English Faculty alumni - shared insight into how to develop one’s personal growth path and prepare oneself for their future career.

Guest speakers included Ho Thi Bach Quyen, talent acquisition head for the Rest of Asia - Asia Pacific region at PepsiCo, Tran Minh Duy, an e-commerce expert and co-founder of eco-farming company The Farmest, and Nguyen Truong Tien, senior manager for credit management at Shinhan Bank Vietnam.

The session was moderated by Tran Phi Tuan, editor at Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

(From left) English Faculty alumni Tran Phi Tuan, editor at Tuoi Tre (Youth) daily newspaper, Ho Thi Bach Quyen, talent acquisition head for the Rest of Asia - Asia Pacific region at PepsiCo, Tran Minh Duy, co-founder of The Farmest, and Nguyen Truong Tien, senior manager for credit management at Shinhan Bank Vietnam, join a panel discussion at the EFAIR 2019, September 7, 2019. Photo: Tuan Son / Tuoi Tre News

Besides the panel discussion, the fair also featured a photo exhibition showcasing the English Faculty’s history of development, a translation and interpreting contest joined by students from universities across Ho Chi Minh City, and a closing gala dinner at the end of the day, where EF alumni of different generations reunited with friends and professors.

EFAIR is the abbreviation for the five core values of the English Faculty, which are Excellence, Flexibility, Aspiration, Integrity, and Responsibility, Dr. Dung said.

"These five core values have been embraced, promoted, and transformed by different generations of the EF," he said.

An English Faculty student views a photo exhibition at the EFAIR 2019 in Ho Chi Minh City, September 7, 2019. Photo: Tuan Son / Tuoi Tre News

The debut EFair was launched in 2013, in what was the first-ever reunion in six decades for the faculty’s alumni and current enrollees.

The event has since been held every two years and become a faculty tradition, with 2019 being its fourth edition.

Vietnam’s leading social sciences university, USSH is a member of Vietnam National University-Ho Chi Minh City, one of the country’s leading institutes of higher learning.

Established in 1957, EF is one of the oldest departments at USSH, with its admission bar among the highest of the school.

The faculty is now running undergraduate and graduate courses in English linguistics and literature, translation and interpreting, American and British studies, and others for over 5,000 students.

Dr. Le Hoang Dung and English Faculty students pose for a group photo at the EFAIR 2019 in Ho Chi Minh City, September 7, 2019. Photo: Tuan Son / Tuoi Tre News

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!