Nguyen Duc Thinh, who entered DTU in 2002, was recently appointed as one of DTU’s official Student Ambassadors at the 2023 ASEAN-Korea Youth Network Workshop in July. Duc Thinh has already represented Vietnam and presented at other forums, including the P2A Roundtable Discussion, World Youth Skills Day (Asia-Pacific), and the 2022 World Tourism Day.
Since high school, Duc Thinh has been working for the educational travel company, “Amazing English Tours,” for six years, as a co-founder, tour guide and a marketing manager while studying at DTU.
Nguyen Duc Thinh, the tour guide
“Now that I’m at university and far from my company, I usually work online and only go back when there’s important events to organize,” explains Duc Thinh explains. “ Then I spend my summer vacation working full-time at my company, which is like family to me because it has been greatly beneficial in my life. Moreover, the work there is community-oriented, which is especially important.”
Duc Thinh, a workplace and a family
Coincidentally, the theme of the 2023 DTU Student Ambassador contest that Duc Thinh participated in was the same as his company’s: “Go Global”, so he signed up right away, even though he was not confident because he already knew how good the other contestants were. However, after three rounds of challenging competition, Duc Thinh became one of the two DTU Student Ambassadors and received a scholarship to attend the workshop in Korea. His success was the result of relentless study since university enrollment, when he was awarded a full DTU scholarship to attend the PSU-standard Tourism & Travel Management major, which fully covered his tuition costs for all four years.
Duc Thinh is also one of the founders and now President of the DTU Skills Club, which organizes monthly activities to share their experiences and skills and get together to learn from each other.
Duc Thinh trains members of the DTU Skills Club
“The club is my brainchild, so I always put much effort into each event,” he confides. “I talk about my experiences and anything I can share with the other students to boost their confidence and skills. Our club has only been going for two years, but is already widely known thanks to the difference we have already made, our enthusiasm and positive energy.”
Duc Thinh also actively participates in international student and cultural exchanges with other ASEAN countries, to improve his English and learn more from the foreign students. As a result, he has been invited to speak on assorted topics at several international forums and meanwhile also won the 2021 Youth Model ASEAN Conference Championship.
Duc Thinh is also a DTU Marketing Leader. “This is a job to which I was randomly assigned and has prevailed until today,” he explains. “I am in charge of communications planning and execution, and membership management. This unique experience has proved invaluable because it has brought me closer to the lecturers and partners in the hospitality sector, and I have learned much from them.”
With his perseverance and his enterprising spirit, Duc Thinh has overcome all obstacles with outstanding results. Because of his dedication and contributions to the development of the university, he won the Dean’s Scholarship in 2022. Now, with yet another impressive achievement at the 2023 DTU Student Ambassador contest, he is convinced that everything he has done so far was well worth it. Coincidentally, the Korean lecturer who awarded Duc Thinh the 2022 Dean’s Scholarship also awarded him the DTU Student Ambassadorship this year.
Duc Thinh loves K-pop, and always wished he could visit Korea. So his trip there in July will allow him to meet his favorite band Loona and he knows that his dream is about to come true. However, at the same time, he understands that, to represent his university and spread its values, he needs to continue his hard work to reach an even higher level of excellence. Duc Thinh says he will do his best to participate actively and leave a good impression with the students from the ASEAN and from Korea, while he experiences the Korean culture and cuisine to round off his visit.
(Media Center)