A Tay girl who dreams of becoming a diplomat

“I am Loc Thi Toan and I am living with my father and younger brother in a level-4 house in Dinh Lap commune, Dinh Lap district, Lang Son province. My family is considered a poor household in one of the most difficult communes in the province. My father is nearly 50 years old with poor health and making a living for us all by raising livestock and doing seasonal labor jobs with an income from 1.000.000 to 1.500.000 VND/month. My parents got divorced when I was in 9th grade and my mother is living in a remote area.”

Above is the confessed line of a female student from the Tay ethnic group when she received the “Brighter Path” scholarship run by the VinaCapital Foundation. Regardless of obstacles in life, Loc Thi Toan has never stopped trying to continue her studies and follow her dreams. During high school, she managed to maintain excellent performance and achieved high results in the district and provincial exams. She is currently a third-year student majoring in International Communications at Diplomatic Academy. Thanks to the timely financial support from the “Brighter Path” scholarship, Toan was enabled to have a university life instead of becoming a worker or getting married at a very young age. During her journey with the program, the VCF team also provided needed assistance and guidance to enhance her confidence to cope with difficulties and move on.

Toan has actively participated in various activities and movements to develop herself and contribute to promoting the positive image of Vietnamese students. Notably, she was an excellent student of the East Camp of Zhejiang Media University, China (2021), joined a cultural exchange program with Ngee Ann Polytechnic School, Singapore (2022), and became a member of the Vietnamese delegations at the Youth Conference of the Ship for Southeast Asian and Japanese Youth Programme (SSEAYP) (2022). In December 2022, she was granted a scholarship provided by the Chinese Embassy in Vietnam for excellent diplomatic students. In the ceremony, the VCF representative was present to congratulate and motivate her more.

To cover her study and living expenses, Toan used to work as a worker in an industrial park during the summer and is currently working three part-time jobs at the same time. Toan also devotes herself to activities to support disadvantaged groups such as children and young people at Hope Village, and National Children’s Hospital and is a member of Plan International Vietnam to help ethnic minority groups. Being fortunate enough to receive the “Brighter Path” scholarship with more opportunities to develop regardless of life challenges, Toan always wishes to share and support those in need towards a better life.

“I am very lucky to receive the scholarship because it changed my life completely. In the past, I used to feel so insecure and unclear about the future. But the scholarship has helped me become much better and better as a more open-minded, modern, and positive version”, said Toan. Her sharing made VCF’s team feel touched and happy. Just like many other girls joining this scholarship program, Loc Thi Toan can now be confident to go to many more places, participate in more activities, make more milestones and contribute more to society.

Do you want to join hands to give more opportunities to more girls like her for a better future? Please check this out.