Frequently Asked Questions
Pre-departure Information for Penn Faculty, Staff, and Affiliates
How do I apply for my Vietnam visa?
There are two ways to apply for your Vietnamese visa:
- In most cases the Vingroup-Penn Alliance Operations Team will apply for the visa on your behalf. You will need the following items:
- Visa application (this will be provided by a member of the operations team)
- A passport style photo (this must be forward-facing with a plain background)
- A scan of the information page of your passport
- In exceptional cases you will apply for your own visa (e.g. when traveling with family and you choose to apply for their tourist visas along with your business visa). You will need the three items mentioned above which will be explained further by a member of the Vingroup-Penn Alliance Operations Team.
Other Frequently Asked Questions
Is Penn building a Penn campus in Vietnam?
The Vingroup-Penn Alliance was formed to work as a partnership to build a new university with connections to Penn university, but it is not a Penn campus in Vietnam.
Will VinUniversity students be attending classes at Penn?
VinUniversity students will be enrolled full-time at VinUniversity, but will have the opportunity to participate in academic exchange programs once those linkages are made.
How does the Vingroup-Penn Alliance plan to improve the health care and health education of Vietnam writ large?
The goals of the Vingroup-Penn Alliance are to improve health outcomes and health education in Vietnam. VinUniversity health sciences department is designed to meet international standards and this improvement in quality will have spillover effects for the entire country. Doctors and nurses trained at VinUniversity will take their knowledge when practicing in hospitals and clinics across the country. Additionally, Penn and VinUniversity work closely with the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education and Training to meet and exceed the national standards in Vietnam. Through this close relationship, Penn hopes to increase the expectations and standards for other health science programs across Vietnam.
How do I get involved?
Once the following items are developed, opportunities will be announced on this webpage. There will be opportunities at VinUniversity for short term basic science teaching, short- and long-term clinical service, for the development of clinical programs, and of clinical educator faculty, research opportunities linked to the clinical areas of emphasis. Students and advanced trainees can rotate on site for research or clinical activities, and/or work on teams to develop the projects. We will also need mentors for VinUni/Vinmec staff and faculty.
More information is available at this page here.
What is the language of instruction at VinUniversity?
The language of instruction at VinUniversity is English.
Who is the Vingroup?
The Vingroup is a Vietnamese conglomerate. More information on the company and its subsidiaries is available here.