Born in a remote village, Nung ethnic minority youth Hoang Duc Chung scored first on the entrance university exam five years ago with a 28.7/30 score and has a final GPA of 3.91/4.

Chung’s hometown, VanLang commune in DongHy district, was one of the poorest localities in Thai Nguyen province. He grew up in hardship and realized that higher education was a good way to escape poverty.

Chung’s parents relied on tea farming for income. His childhood revolved around a small local school where he excelled academically.

After primary school, his mother enrolled him in Dong Hy Ethnic Boarding Secondary School, hoping for better study opportunities for her son. This marked a turning point in Chung’s life. 

In seventh grade, Chung’s first encountered computers during informatics lessons, which sparked his passion for technology. This helped him come first at the entrance exam to the ThaiNguyen University of Industrial Technology, a member school of Thai Nguyen University

He studied and worked hard in the first year to build a strong foundation and maintain high grades. He paid great attention to lectures in class, then read books and searched for study materials at home, organizing knowledge in his own way.

From his sophomore year, Chung ran an online class with 10 students, helping them overcome tough subjects like Calculus, Physics, Chemistry, and C++ Programming. This not only helped his classmates but also helped him review knowledge.

With a solid foundation from the first two years, Chung found third-year specialized courses manageable, freeing time for skill-building activities.

He pursued research, earning outstanding ratings for school-level projects, and joined technology competitions, science workshops, and STEM activities. Chung won prestigious awards, including second place at the National Physics Olympiad, first place at the school’s Physics Olympiad, and more.

The Nung youth was honored as a “Top 5 Student” nationally in 2022-2023; received Sao Thang Gieng Award in 2022; was recognized as an Outstanding Ethnic Minority Youth in 2023; and earned numerous commendations.

To balance studies and extracurricular activities, Chung arranged his time well, setting deadlines to fulfill tasks. He honed his self-study and research skills. 

“I always clarify why I must achieve a goal. When I feel tired, I recall this to regain my positivity and confidence,” Chung said.

He views every challenge as a valuable lesson that helps foster maturity and quickly solve problems.

Before graduation, Chung received a job offer, passed an interview, and joined a Hanoi telecommunications group as a software development engineer. He aims to deepen expertise, improve his skills, and learn languages to become a professional programmer. 

Thanh Hung