Transnational Higher Education Development and Implementation: A Review of the Offshore Programs in Vietnam for a University in Taiwan

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to review the offshore programs in Vietnam which have been developed and implemented for seven years by the case university in Taiwan. Being encouraged by the government policy, the case university entered this unfamiliar territory and market in 2007. The question of how a university from Taiwan, without English nor colonial background, could find its position in the already competitive international education market in Vietnam. After years of learning-by-doing process, the scale of their offshore programs has grown to be the largest one across all universities in Taiwan. As being deeply involved in these programs, in this study the author tries to review the seven-year programs and to point out the lessons learned from their development and implementation. It is reflected in this case study that the cultural, social and geographical relevance between Taiwan and Vietnam appear to be the one of the key factors that contributes to the development and success of the case university's projects in Vietnam.