Vietnam semiconductor workforce meets just 20% of industry demand: academic

Vietnam faces a significant shortage of semiconductor workers, with the country currently meeting just 20% of actual demand, said a senior academic.

Citing a report by the Center of Forecasting Manpower Needs and Labor Market Information Ho Chi Minh City (FALMI), Nguyen Thanh Mai, deputy director of the Vietnam National University-HCMC, stressed that only 20% of the country's existing engineers were qualified to work in high-tech sectors, with the remainder requiring further training.

Speaking at a forum on global cooperation in semiconductor workforce development held in Hanoi on Friday, Mai outlined some of the main challenges facing Vietnam’s semiconductor sector.

These include a shortage of skilled trainers and experts, outdated laboratory facilities, weak collaboration between companies and universities, and limited public awareness of the industry.

Do Thi Thu Huong, government affairs manager at Intel Vietnam, recommended that the Vietnamese government strengthen its partnerships with companies and educational institutions to bolster the domestic semiconductor workforce.

She also emphasized the need to develop and customize educational programs based on industry input, supported by government funding and resources.

Huong proposed the government provide assistance to semiconductor firms in hiring interns through scholarships and internship programs. Moreover, universities and companies should collaborate and jointly implement innovation projects.

She shared that Intel has so far supported the training of 8,000-10,000 semiconductor engineers in Vietnam through various programs.

Yeonsang Park, director of the Inter-University Semiconductor Research Center at South Korea’s Chungnam University, suggested the Vietnamese government build closer ties with global companies and foster strong connections between universities and industry.

Prof. Laurent El Ghaoui, dean of the College of Engineering & Computer Science at Hanoi-based VinUniversity, proposed that business associations form an alliance to promote the development of Vietnam’s semiconductor workforce.

Vietnam is estimated to need 30,000-50,000 semiconductor engineers by 2030. In October 2023, the government said it planned to train between 50,000 and 100,000 highly skilled workers in the 2025-2030 period as the country prepared for a fresh investment wave into the semiconductor industry.