You Can Never Have Too Many Tech Events

By Kim Loan Nguyen, Community Affairs Manager, Microsoft Vietnam

At Microsoft Vietnam, we’ve been hosting so many technology activities lately for students that I had forgotten the enthusiasm and inspiration the events can bring out in the participants. Our latest event and advanced IT course, ‘Technology Trends and Microsoft New Solutions’, was held at the library of the renowned Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST). Seventy attendees, including HUST students who had joined the ‘Starting Up with Microsoft’ competition and those from the programme ‘Advanced ICT Skills Training’, participated.

We introduced topics that information and communications technology (ICT) students had expressed interest in at past events, such as technology trends and factors affecting current and future app design, the use of software such as Hyper-V, Windows 8 and cloud computing.

The trainer was Quan Tran from Microsoft Vietnam Solutions Group, who introduced Windows 8 and cloud computing. He also touched on international certificates that are globally recognised and job skills demands — things that the soon-to-graduate students are most concerned about. Though the students were initially shy, they were soon busy putting forth suggestions, questions and much food for thought.

During a break, I chatted with a student, Vu Khac Tin, who had walked away with the top prize in the ‘Starting Up with Microsoft’ competition we held back in May. His winning entry was the ‘Bibo Book’ app, an interactive app to make learning fun for children between two and six years old. Though he was already well-versed in development tools, he was thrilled about this training, and was excited that we’ll be hosting another event, the ‘mini-MBA’ workshop in December. He said that the back-to-back activities seemed like a “festival of technology for students pursuing product development based on Microsoft technology”.

He added, “With the experts sharing the latest technologies, and Microsoft and Vietnet Information Technology and Communication Center holding practical activities and dialogues, the course is very useful, and we think it should be organised annually for IT students.”

‘Technology Trends and Microsoft New Solutions’ course participants can sign up for the ‘mini-MBA workshop’ that will provide basic entrepreneurship and business administration skills training, as well as the Open Day activity, a forum for enterprises and students.

70 participants took part in the training

In addition to the student programmes, we’re also holding numerous industry collaborations. For instance, in August, we worked with ASEAN Foundation and Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry to organise a Training of Trainers session on networking security and ICT solutions for community development.

In the midst of organising all of these events, I had forgotten that we’re celebrating technology by offering so many learning opportunities. I agree with Vu Khac Tin. You can never have too many events in a festival of technology!