“For my family, 3.5 million VND for the last semester’s tuition is a fortune. It’s as much as my mum earns in a month.”
Quang Đại is a vocational trainee in Mechatronics at Lý Tự Trọng Vocational College. His father passed away when he was a child due to illness, leaving his mother to raise two children on her own. The three of them live in a small rented room, about 10 kilometres from Đại’s school. The family only owns one bicycle, so he usually takes the bus or relies on friends to get to class.
When saigonchildren first met Đại, he had just started his internship and had only one semester left to complete his course. Without paying the tuition fees on time, he wouldn’t have been able to graduate as planned. During the scholarship application interview for our Getting Ready for Work programme, Đại shared emotionally with our social worker:
“When I heard about this tuition support, I was so happy and applied immediately, even though I was still away for my internship. I asked to schedule the meeting a few days later, and during those days I was really anxious, wondering whether I would be accepted. For my family, 3.5 million VND for the last semester’s tuition is a fortune. It’s as much as my mum earns in a month. She still has to pay for rent, utilities, food, and my younger sister’s school fees.”

Đại is a dedicated and capable student. Whether during his internship or in the English class financially supported by saigonchildren (to earn the TOEIC certificate required for graduation), he consistently performed well. He achieved a score of 8.0/10 for his internship, ranking Grade A (Good). Now, Đại has officially graduated and secured a full-time job in his field at a company in Gò Vấp District, earning 6.5 million VND per month.
When asked about his feelings upon receiving the scholarship, Đại shared:
“I was both touched and happy. I want to express my deepest gratitude to saigonchildren and the sponsors for giving me the opportunity to grow, and for motivating me to overcome my struggles to continue my education. As I promised, I graduated as planned, and I’ll keep trying my best to live up to the trust they’ve placed in me.”

Saigonchildren may not be able to accompany every child throughout their long and difficult learning journey.
But we take comfort in knowing that sometimes, our support, even if small, arrives at just the right time to spark hope and light the way forward. And Đại’s story is one of those moments.