Semiconductor Workforce in Vietnam: Many Universities Now Offer Semiconductor Training Programs

With the government's efforts in addressing the shortage of high-quality workers, many universities now offer semiconductor training programs.

05Mar2025

B&Company

Latest News & Report / Vietnam Briefing

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In this section “Vietnam Briefing”, young researchers of B&Company will provide timely information of Vietnam’s industrial trends, consumer trends, and social movements.

This article is written in English and automatic translation is used for other language versions. Please refer to the English version for accurate content. Although we strive to ensure the accuracy of the original information, please check separately for each information. Interpretations and future prospects are the personal opinions of each researcher.

In order to keep up with the rapid growth of the semiconductor industry, the government has introduced support measures to address the challenge of a limited supply of high-quality workers in the industry, leading to many universities now offering semiconductor training programs.

Vietnam’s Workforce Landscape

As of 2024, Vietnam remains in its “golden population structure” phase[1], with the labor force aged 15 and older reaching 53 million in 2024, maintaining a stable level of 67% of the total population over the past five years since 2019. The workforce is mainly from rural and suburban areas, accounting for 61%, while urban workers comprise the remaining 39%[2].

However, the proportion of highly skilled and degree-holding workers in Vietnam remains relatively low. In 2024, only around 28% of the population had completed vocational training or higher education[3]. The semiconductor industry faces a similar situation, as a professional economist in Vietnam points out, for the next 5 – 10 years, the semiconductor industry will demand 20,000 to 50,000 high-skill workers[4]. Meanwhile, Vietnam now only has around 6,000 chip design engineers, mostly in Ho Chi Minh City[5].

Vietnam’s Workforce Landscape

Source: Nhan Dan Newspaper

Government Initiatives to Strengthen the Semiconductor Workforce

On September 21, 2024, the government issued Decision No. 1017/QĐ-TTg: Developing human resources for the semiconductor industry by 2030, with a vision to 2050. This decision outlines specific objectives and tasks aimed at fostering the growth of Vietnam’s semiconductor workforce.

Decision No. 1017/QĐ-TTg: Semiconductor workforce development plans

Focus sector Objective until 2030 Objective until 2050
Human resource Vietnam aims to develop 50,000 highly skilled professionals with at least a university degree in fields related to the semiconductor industry, including:

·     At least 42,000 engineers, 7,500 master’s degree holders, and 500 doctoral researchers.

·     A minimum of 15,000 professionals specializing in chip design and research and 35,000 workers engaged in assembly, testing, packaging, and manufacturing.

·     At least 5,000 experts in artificial intelligence (AI) applications specifically serving the semiconductor industry.

·   Meeting Vietnam’s demand for both the quantity and quality of human resources in the semiconductor industry

·   Training institutions and higher education institutions/Universities in Vietnam are fully capable of providing high-quality human resource training to serve the semiconductor industry

Infrastructure ·   Constructing, upgrading, and modernization of four national-level semiconductor laboratories, with 2 in Hanoi, 1 in Ho Chi Minh City, and 1 in Da Nang.

·   Semiconductor laboratories at 18 educational institutions nationwide will be built and upgraded[6].

Training program ·   Coordinating with domestic and international organizations and enterprises to provide specialized training for 1,300 professors at research institutes, universities, training support centers, and businesses.

·   Developing and implementing exchange programs and scholarship initiatives for semiconductor-related fields.

Source: Vietnam Government Portal

University Efforts in Expanding Semiconductor Training Programs

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