• 26 Jan 2023
• 2023

Scientific research - Efforts to increase academic prestige, spread and transfer knowledge to the community

In 2022, scientific research activities of University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH) have achieved significant results, continuing to contribute to the table of achievements in the journey of more than 47 years of establishment and development of UEH. At the same time, this is also a testament to the efforts of the UEH team in increasing academic prestige, spreading and transferring community knowledge, and contributing to realizing the strategic goal of becoming a Multidisciplinary and Sustainable University. 

The event UEH is honored to be in the TOP 401+ of the best universities in Asia (QS Asia), and at the same time, ranked in the top position by the prestigious Spanish scientific research institution ranking organization (SCImago). The 278th position in the list of 1,485 Asian universities and research institutes in 2022 and the fact that JABES is included in the SCOPUS index in 2023 have confirmed UEH's success with the goal of internationalizing and strengthening its academic reputation in the international arena. The above encouraging results are due to the unremitting efforts of UEH lecturers and staff in scientific research activities, demonstrated through academic research activities and the international publication, scientific research topics at all levels, as well as activities of national and international scientific conferences.

Regarding international publication, in 2022, UEH has more than 500 articles published in prestigious international journals in the Web of Science, Scopus, ABDC. Besides the increasing number of international publications, the quality of international publications is also increasingly improved. The Scopus database shows that: UEH has more than 85% of articles published in journals ranked in the Q1 (top 25%) and Q2 (top 25%-50%) percentiles of the Scopus journal categories. More than 80% of UEH's articles are published in journals belonging to prestigious international publishers recognized by the State Council of Professors, such as Springer, Elsevier, Wiley-Blackwell, Taylor and Francis, Sage, etc.

At the same time, international cooperation in scientific research is also promoted. Implementing the regulation on researchers promulgated in 2021, by the end of 2022, UEH’s 100 collaborating researchers and collaborative activities with these researchers have promoted academic research and UEH's international publication in prestigious and high-ranking scientific journals in the world. It helps to increase UEH's academic reputation by strengthening its international research network, serving university rankings such as: QS Asia and THE, connecting international scientists, spreading the spirit of international publication, connecting internal and external forces, and enhancing knowledge sharing inside and outside UEH to develop operational quality scientific research actively and sustainably. According to the Scopus database on international cooperation activities in the Scopus publication, in the period of 2019 - 2022, UEH scientists have collaborated with many scholars from 613 universities abroad, including many fields spread across continents in a total of 1,700 Scopus publications; thereby showing the diverse and extensive international research network of UEH.

Research for sustainable development goals has also achieved initial positive results. In 2022, the University focused on orienting research directions to develop UEH into a Multidisciplinary and Sustainable University by issuing main research directions (research mainstream), promoting integrated research between technology with the university's traditional fields of study. Besides, the University also orients internationally published research according to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. In the period of 2019-2022, UEH has 733 Scopus articles associated with sustainable development goals. In 2022, the number of articles and the proportion of international articles in Scopus journals associated with sustainable development criteria were 487 articles and 49%, respectively, increasing compared to previous years (in 2021: 468 articles, 48 %; 2020: 377 articles, 47%). These articles focus on SDGs 8 (decent jobs and economic growth), SDG 10 (reducing inequality), SDG 9 (industry, innovation, and infrastructure), SDG 13 (climate action), SDG 12 (responsible consumption and production), SDG 7 (cheap and clean energy), etc. Most studies have FWCI citation coefficients (after adjusting for the effect of climate change) greater than 1. The average value of the FWCI for 2019-2022 is 3.1, showing that Scopus publication associated with sustainable development goals has a 210% higher influence than those announced by the world’s universities in the same field. The above results have shown the responsibility, prestige, and influence of UEH's scientific research on the development of the community and society.

UEH's international publication is associated with sustainable development goals and FWCI citation coefficient for the period 2019-2022

In parallel with international publication activities, in 2022, scientific research projects at all levels are also promoted and have positive results. Regarding the national-level topic, in 2022, the University approved 01 state-level project "Digital economic development: Orientation and policy solutions under the National Science and Technology Program for the period of 2021-2025, Researching political theory in the period of 2021-2025" and completing 01 ministerial programs "Research on governance model of public universities under the fully autonomous mechanism". Regarding ministerial-level and ministerial-equivalent topics (Nafosted/province/city), in 2022, UEH has a total of 12 ministerial-level and ministry-equivalent projects that have been accepted for acceptance (1 Nafosted project; 11 ministerial/province-level projects). Considering only ministerial-level projects, by the end of November 2022, the University was implementing 25 ministerial-level projects, of which 06 have been officially accepted. Regarding school-level topics, in 2022, the University held 68 acceptance tests. Continuing to implement the Project to improve the quality of grassroots projects and propose key university-level topics in the direction of products published in domestic and foreign journals. In 2022, 48 projects were accepted by-products without setting up an acceptance committee. In addition, UEH continues to implement the policy of encouraging university-level topics for applied research in teaching new training programs associated with becoming a Multidisciplinary and Sustainable University.

Besides research activities for lecturers and staff, scientific research activities of students continue to be promoted and improved in quality. In 2022, UEH had 375 scientific research projects of 1247 students who have completed and participated in the "Young Researcher" award of the University with 284 winning topics, of which 46 topics won A Prize, 127 topics of the projects won the B Prize, and 111 topics won the C prize. Besides, the number of winning topics at the "Applied Econometrics Olympic" contest of the Central Student Association Vietnam in 2022 increased with 3-second prizes, 3-Third prizes and 6 Consolation prizes. The Youth Union's Eureka Award in 2022 ended with 01 Third Prize and 01 Consolation Prize. In particular, UEH was honored to achieve high achievements at the Science and Technology Award for students in higher education institutions in 2022 of the Ministry of Education and Training: 01 first prize and 01-second prize.

In 2022, UEH also organized 30 international scientific conferences and seminars in both online and offline forms, attracting the participation of international speakers and domestic scientists. Notable seminars include The 4th Asian Conference on Economics and Business Studies (ACBES 2022); the International Conference on Business and Finance (ICBF 2022); the International Conference on Applied Linguistics and Language Education (ICALLE 2022); the International Conference on “Innovative Philosophy and Law” (IPL 2022); International Conference on “AAERE2022: A pathway towards Carbon Neutrality in Asia”;10th International Conference on Emerging Challenges (ICECH): Strategic adaptation in the world of uncertainties; Workshop on “Innovation and Sustainable Entrepreneurship.” In particular, the series of scientific seminars “Ready for Next” closed in 2022 with many activities ready to transform for sustainable development. These are 04 international scientific conferences with a new approach to multi-disciplinary knowledge with 25 in-depth seminars, and scientific seminars around Sustainability, Technology, Design, and Art. The program has the participation and mentoring of professors, experts, and prestigious organizations domestically and abroad.

Scientific seminar series Ready for Next 2022 at UEH

The results of UEH in scientific research activities in 2022 show that the University's innovation policy in research has been on the right track, and the outstanding efforts of the leaders and research teams, lecturers, school officials. We can completely believe that if we continue to maintain and promote the achieved results and make more efforts, UEH will increasingly assert its academic reputation in the international arena and will spread and transform community knowledge transfer more vigorously, thereby becoming a prestigious research university in the international arena.

New, photos: UEH Department of Scientific Management and International Cooperation