[Exclusive] HUFS plans dual degree pathway with Vietnam’s Diplomatic Academy

Hankuk University of Foreign Studies seeks to turn overseas partnerships into structured academic cooperation. A dual-degree program with the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam marks the latest step in that initiative, the university said Wednesday.

Speaking to The Korea Herald, HUFS President Kang Kee-hoon said he would travel to Vietnam on Oct. 30 to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam. The public higher education institution operates under Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He said that the university is seeking to expand “2 plus 2” and “1 plus 3” arrangements with overseas institutions as part of a broader shift from growing its international network to producing more concrete educational and research outcomes from those ties.

The academy specializes in diplomacy, international relations, international law and economics, and trains personnel for the country’s diplomatic service.

Under the proposed “2 plus 2” arrangement, students would spend two years at the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam and another two years at HUFS. Upon completion, they would receive two undergraduate degrees, one from each institution.

The two universities are targeting an annual cohort of around 20 to 30 DAV students, with the first students expected to begin studying at HUFS in about two years.

The departments involved, credit-transfer arrangements and detailed implementation schedule have yet to be finalized. The memorandum to be signed at the ceremony this month will not itself establish the program or set out its detailed operation.

HUFS said the two institutions plan to negotiate the program’s structure after signing the memorandum and subsequently conclude a separate memorandum agreement before launching it.

Vietnam has emerged as one focus of HUFS’ effort to deepen overseas partnerships beyond student exchanges and broad memorandums.

HUFS currently operates a 2 plus 2 program with the University of Languages and International Studies under Vietnam National University, Hanoi. Students admitted through the program are already studying at HUFS.

HUFS and ULIS signed agreements covering 2 plus 2 and 1 plus 3 programs in January 2023.

The university also signed a similar agreement with the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Ho Chi Minh City in December 2024, although no students have yet entered HUFS through that program.

HUFS said its 2 plus 2 and 1 plus 3 programs with Southeast Asian universities generally follow a two-step process, with the institutions first signing a broad memorandum and later concluding a separate MOA setting out details such as participating departments, curricula and implementation. The planned Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam program will follow the same process.

HUFS currently runs similar programs with international institutions including the University of Delaware, Stony Brook University and National Taiwan Normal University.

The university is separately expanding cooperation with universities in Hong Kong.

The Education University of Hong Kong is scheduled to visit HUFS on Nov. 11, when the two institutions plan to sign an agreement covering student exchanges and other forms of cooperation.

HUFS is also discussing possible cooperation with the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, though the university said those talks remain at an exploratory stage.