Alumni updates – Indonesia & Vietnam

Alumni updates – Indonesia & Vietnam

Indonesia

Josefhine Chitra (2011-12) graduated in 2013 with the title of “Best Graduate.” She currently works as a communication consultant at Maverick, where she was promoted within nine months. She volunteers bi-weekly teaching at an alternative school for victims of expulsion and became a Model United Nations coach and English debate adjudicator. She recently coached a team of Indonesian students to win Best Position Paper at the UNESCO chamber of London International Model United Nations.

Amalia Novita Sari (2011-12) graduated in May 2013 from State University of Medan as the “best graduate” from the Faculty of Languages and Arts. In 2013, she participated in the Indonesia-Korea Youth Exchange Program as the Assistant Youth Leader. Currently, she works as an English teacher at a high school in Medan and also at Yayasan Pengembangan Persahabatan Indonesia-Amerika (YPPIA) Medan.

 

Nanak Hikmatullah (2011-12) graduated from his university in December 2013. He is currently working on a social innovation project funded by World Learning as part of the 2013 Alumni Engagement Initiative Program, entitled “After-School Enrichment Project.” He is also working at Wall Street English, a multinational English school owned by Pearson PLC.

 

 

 

 

Vietnam

Viet Anh Le (2008-09) Upon completing her UGRAD program at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, Viet received the President’s Award for Excellence to continue her studies at DePauw University where she majored in Communication and minored in Chinese and Asian Studies. She graduated Magna Cum Laude in May 2013. Upon completing her degree and returning home, she began designing and teaching her own English and Interpersonal Communication classes.  She is currently in the process of obtaining her teaching license, which would enable her to teach at the local colleges in Hanoi.

 

Hoang Minh Vu (2008-09) is now a Senior Graphic Designer at South East Asia Development Co., Limited in Danang, Vietnam.

Hoang Thi Khanh Tam (2008-09) was sponsored by University of Queensland, Australia to present at the 8^th CamTESOL Conference on “Applying Multiple Intelligences Theory to Promote Students’ Motivation.” Her presentation topic was “Action Research in  English Phonetics and Phonology.” She is currently a Lotus (Erasmus Mundus) grant holder in pursuit of an Advanced Masters in Linguistics in Belgium, with a focus on Methods of Corpus Linguistics.

Thao Nguyen (2009-10) continued to follow her career path in Brand Management after being inspired by a course she took at Endicott College during her UGRAD experience. She was selected into PepsiCo Vietnam’s Management Trainee Program in 2011 and advanced professionally and personally through various marketing projects for global brands such as Pepsi and 7Up Revive, and successfully launched Mountain Dew into the market. Her “Think and Drink” campaign to promote the use of glass bottles to reduce impact to the environment won the PepsiCo APAC “Performance with Purpose” award.

Ai Vi Nguyen (2009-10) graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in English Linguistics and Literature in early 2012 and started teaching English at a local language school. She successfully completed the Project Design and Proposal Writing course offered by World Learning in 2012 and won an award of $4,000 to implement her “Inspire A Dream” project. In 2013, she received an IPS scholarship from P.E.O and is now pursuing her Masters’ program in Public Affairs at Indiana University-South Bend.

Truong Thi Thu Ngan (2010-11) graduated from Danang University of Language Studies as the valedictorian. She remains an active UGRAD alumna in central Vietnam and established the “State Alumni Club (SAC) in Central Vietnam” with her fellow and senior alumni in the region. Her current projects aim to equip youth with soft skills and in-depth knowledge – as well as hands-on experiences – via a wide range of activities like workshops, American holiday celebrations, field trips, etc. She won the National Alumni Small Grants Competition twice upon her arrival back in Vietnam. SAC plays an important role in connecting and expanding the alumni network in the middle of Vietnam by U.S. Embassy Hanoi.

Bao Chau Vu (2010-11) graduated from the University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University and was offered a job teaching there as a lecturer in the English Department. In October 2013 she traveled to the U.S. to study for a Master’s degree in Educational Research at Louisiana State University (LSU). Her most recent contribution to the activities of the U.S. Embassy was presenting at the Alumni Provincial Outreach Program in August 2013.

Phuong Quoc Nguyen (2010-11) joined PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)-Vietnam in 2012 and has since been exposed to a wide range of industries, especially the green energy sector. He met up with one of his U.S. college professors in Ho Chi Minh City and occasionally speaks about U.S. Embassy-funded scholarship opportunities at the English Club of Hanoi -Foreign Trade University.

Tham Nguyen (2010-11) is currently working as a Human Resource Executive for a company from Holland, specializing in project management, design and architecture. She has been working in the HR field for nearly three years, and though not originally the career path she intended to follow, she is performing well and has received positive feedback the CEO of her company.