Dear Karen and everyone at Lifestart Foundation,

My name is Nguyen Van Luan, the lucky student who has received your scholarship during these past years.

Today, I am very happy and excited to be writing this letter and informing you that I have completed my studeis, and am now a qualified pharmacist.

Five years of studying in Ho Chi Minh has not been a long time for me but it has changed my life in many areas. Learning at the Ho Chi Minh University of Medicine and Pharmacy has given me the opportunity to be in contact with many good students around the Southeast region of Vietnam and a lot of excellent Professors and Doctors in the field of pharmaceutical research in Vietnam. In particular, I had the opportunity to explore the entire process from the research and development of active ingredients to formulations, piloting drug production and industrial large-scale production. I also looked at quality assurance during drug production and quality control in clinical trials.

During the final term, I was really lucky to visit a big drug factory in Lam Dong named Ladophar. I could see the process of growing artichokes meeting the standards of Good Agricultural and Collection Practices (GACP) at the large artichoke gardens in Da Lat. The workers collected leaves and flowers of the artichoke plant and then took them to the factory for preliminary processing. At the factory, they were washed and processed. Artichoke leaves were divided and dried to make tea bags and their flowers extracted with solvent to obtain an extract. This artichoke extract was used to make a variety of different medications such as tablets, capsules or syrup. In addition, I also visited the drug testing center at Vung Tau city. I tested a drug on the market to check that it reached the quality criteria. After the field trip, I took a graduation module consisting of 2 professional knowledge tests and a small report. Later, I completed my graduation exam with a total score of 8.0 out of a possible 10.

During the past 5 years of studying, I was sometimes really stressed with the lectures, practice agendas in the lab and exams. However, I finally gained control and finished my studies on time. This is the foundation for my future work.

After receiving the graduation certificate, I had an opportunity to experience a short-term job specializing in organizing offline classes on thinking and life skills for students and working people, which gave me a lot of essential knowledge.

I was fortunate to be awarded a scholarship from Lifestart Foundation nearly 10 years ago. At that time my family consisted of 4 people: my grandma, my mum and 2 siblings. My mum sold fish at the market to cover living expenses for our family and she was the only person providing support for the whole family, so life was very difficult. Studying was the only way to get my family out of hardship and I have tried my best to achieve the highest academic results possible. And fortunately, I received a Lifestart Foundation education scholarship. It was a great help for me and my family. The scholarship has paid for my tuition fees and extra classes. Besides that, I was also provided with books and study supplies. I was really happy and excited to receive this help from Lifestart Foundation and sponsors.

Since receiving a Lifestart Foundation scholarship, my family life has become much better. My mum still continues working hard but she is relieved of some of the pressure of earning money to pay for school fees and to support the whole family. Besides that, I had the opportunity to participate in extra classes. My younger brother had better conditions for his studies and also had more books and learning tools. I think that if I hadn’t received this scholarship, my family life would probably be much harder and my study results would not be as good as they are now.

The Lifestart Foundation scholarship is a great gift which has helped me to have a better future. I’m really grateful for this help and I would like to take responsibility for helping others who are in difficult situations. Once again, I sincerely thank Ms. Karen and Lifestart Foundation for your generous help. I would like to sincerely thank you for what you have done for me and my family during these past years. I wish you and everyone at Lifestart Foundation good health, good luck and happiness in life.

Best wishes,

Nguyen Van Luan