HASS Courses

Credit: 3

Pre-requisite: NA

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Understand the basic philosophical foundations of Marxism-Leninism, including dialectical materialism and historical materialism
2. Explain its significance in the development of Vietnam’s state ideology and relevance to other areas of society including history, politics and economics
3. Know that Vietnamese philosophy features elements of syncretism and be able to describe those elements (e.g., Marxism-Leninism, Confucianism, Buddhism, Daoism, etc.)
4. Describe, evaluate and compare different answers to foundational philosophical questions such as “what exists?”, “what is knowledge?”, and “what is right and wrong?”
5. Understand and assess different approaches to the nature of science and scientific progress

Credit: 2

Pre-requisite: NA

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the complexity of how the world is interconnected through the political economy.
2. Develop an informed understanding of conceptual terms and theoretical approaches used in understanding the global economy.
3. Understand the transformation of Vietnam in the context of the global political economy.
4. Cultivate a critical-minded awareness of major trends in the global political economy.
5. Acquire an informed understanding of the rise of China and India and the resulting impacts on Vietnam, ASEAN, and the world.

Credit: 2
Pre-requisite: NA

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Describe and explain the concepts of politics and social change of Vietnam and around the region, and acquire some lexicon of the subject;
2. Understand how politics and political systems are key to socio-economic developments, including but not limited to the Marxist-Leninist views;
3. Understand the ways politics affects economic management, and help determine national success
4. Compare Vietnam’s national development with national efforts elsewhere in Asia;

Credit: 2
Pre-requisite: NA

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Know the major events, persons, and historical conditions the led to the creation and development of the Vietnamese Communist Party
2. Critically review historical artifacts, including textual documents, art, literature, archeology, and accounts of informants.
3. Grasp the historical factors and precedents that relate to contemporary issues and gain the ability to apply historical and cultural knowledge to understanding and analyzing contemporary problems
4. Present historical evidence-based arguments
5. Explore multiple perspectives about the past, especially the past as understood from the vantage of former historical actors.

Credit: 2

Pre-requisite: NA

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Know the major events, persons, and historical conditions the led to the creation and development of Ho Chi Minh Ideology and engage Ho Chi Minh Ideology as both a historical and living body of thought.
2. Consider the ongoing transformation of Ho Chi Minh thought and its significance in history and for Vietnam’s future.
3. Critically review historical artifacts, including textual documents, art, literature, archeology, and accounts of informants and grasp the historical factors and precedents that relate to contemporary issues
4. Gain ability to apply historical and cultural knowledge to understanding and analyzing contemporary problems
5. Present historical evidence-based arguments and conduct probing discussions about challenging historical subjects
6. Explore multiple perspectives about the past, especially the past as understood from the vantage of former historical actors.

Credit: 2

Pre-requisite: None

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Understand the ways in which individual identities, values, and perceptions and biases are shaped by cultures and different forms of life
2. Know the theories and practice related to the impact of culture in our daily ecologies in local and global contexts
3. Identify and understand the intersection of one’s own and others’ cultural identities
4. Apply knowledge of practice, theory, and personal reflection of different cultures to a particular issue that requires collaboration or cooperation between individuals or groups from different cultural backgrounds

Course Credit: 2

Course Description:

This course exposes students to important Asian philosophers, concepts, and arguments, with a focus on the philosophical traditions that have had the most impact on Vietnam: Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism. Students will apply important philosophical ideas to a variety of social, ethical, and political challenges that occur in their particular fields of study as well as VinUni’s three primary academic areas: medicine, business, and engineering. Students will be able to study how Asian philosophy might help them reach their personal objectives and well-being as part of the course’s other practical component.

External learning activities such as a meditation session with a Buddhist monk, calligraphy at Van Mieu, and a discussion and yoga session with an Indian specialist will all contribute to students’ learning experiences throughout the course. Additional cultural events will include a variety of Asian foods, a Japanese tea ceremony, and the opportunity to study the foundations of ancient languages such as Sanskrit and Pali.

Course Credit: 2

Course Description:

Introduction to Law is a two-credit compulsory course in the General Education Program forming the ideology education component required by the Ministry of Education and Training, Socialist Republic of Vietnam. This course is an introduction to concepts, roles, and principles of law as well as major fields of law in society. It provides students with general knowledge of the law that will serve as a helpful foundation for understanding how the law interacts with other disciplines that they study and pursue in the future.

The course covers various aspects of legal theory including notion, nature, sources, rule of law, major legal and government systems, the legal profession, and comparative legal analysis between different bodies of law, branches of international law as well as different mechanisms of dispute settlement, either at municipal courts or other international forums worldwide. All the topics combine legal understanding and practical issues in both the Vietnamese context and a wide diversity of international legal backgrounds to help students gain familiarity with basic concepts of national law and be aware of international fundamental legal standards.