Vincamp 2018: A memorable Summer Camp in Australia

30 most outstanding students at the VinCamp 2018 competition attended the Presentation and International Young Leaders Summer Camp in Sydney, Australia. The students had 10 memorable days to visit many famous, iconic landmarks, and take part in meaningful social activities. This is an annual program organized by the Vinschool education system. This year’s theme is “Leading change – sharing love”. The students joined in many humanitarian projects, reaching out to the local community.

30 students who had placed first in the VinCamp 2018 competition have been awarded an all-expense paid trip to a summer camp in where they experienced 10 days as true students at Macquarie University, one of the top 10 universities in Australia, and in the Top 100 best universities around the world.

The Sydney Opera House was the most-awaited destination throughout the trip. Standing in front of the symbol of Australia, Nguyen Cong Duy Anh, a participant at VinCamp 2018 said: “I’m happy because my much-awaited dream has come true”.

The students did not pass up the chance to see animals such as kangaroos, koalas… some of which they had only seen on screen. The outing to the Taronga zoo helped students to be more in tune with nature and realized the need and their part in helping to protect the environment for animals.

Macquarie University was where students took classes in presentation and leadership. The 60-year-old institution boasting the most beautiful library in Australia has helped generate increased passion for learning in students.

Macquarie University’s library always opens till 1 AM, with many self-study slots for students. At Macquarie, students have 12 hours in classrooms but at least 24-hours of self-study weekly. All Vinsers realized the importance of self-study once they visited here, which will help them to have better study plans in the future.

Vinsers were taught by local teachers and studied with friends from around the world. They talked about many interesting topics: the benefits of reading, the mindset of today’s youth, or the pros of using tablets in class, etc.

Ms. Brianna Hyndman and many other teachers at Macquarie University were very impressed with the confidence, proactiveness, and the ability to communicate in English of Vinsers. The topics for their presentations this year were very new, which also presented the contemporary issues that garnered students’ attention.

At the Summer camp’s Gala night, student Nguyen Ba Trung delivered an impressive presentation to international friends and teachers.

Sydney has truly brought about many surprises to the students, they had visited many famous Australian scenic sites. On Bondi – Sydney’s most beautiful beach – the students played many games such as Oztag, Rush Ball with the Fusion Sydney South’s members. Fusion Sydney is a nonprofit organization dedicated to youths and youth development. The organization has been in operation for about 50 years and has impacted the lives of many women and children in Australia. Fusion Sydney currently has a presence in 7 cities and territories in Australia. This was a chance for Vinsers to meet, connect and get to know international friends, creating a drive for the students to nurture their dream of discovering new knowledge horizons.

Vinsers were very excited to take pictures with many life-like figures in Madame Tussauds wax museum. The figures on display were very diverse, ranging from famous actors in blockbusters to philanthropists, sports stars, and singers.

Students continued learning about Australian culture through music, dances, and traditional patterns of the indigenous Aborigines.

Ms. Peta Joy, a lecturer at Macquarie University and colleagues helped Vinsers put on Aborigines symbols on their faces and hands, which was very interesting and fun to our students.

The students took part in a very special social activity at Manly beach, picking up and sorting trash. This is very much in line with the theme “Leading Change, Sharing Love” of VinCamp this year. Before that, the students carried out their VinCamp project which had a very positive impact on the community.

The highlight of the trip was a talk with Ms. Minh Nguyet, Vice General Consul – Viet Nam Consulate General in Sydney.

Many students expressed their admiration for her current job and their dream to become a diplomat in the future.

On behalf of the Vietnamese students, Thuy Nguyen presented Ms. Nguyet with a picture of Halong Bay which she had drawn herself. Ms. Minh Nguyet lavished praises on the Vinsers for their proactiveness and talent. She also shared useful information about life and learning in Australia for those wishing to study abroad in Australia.

The 10-day trip to the “land of kangaroos” has brought about very valuable experiences for Vinsers. The trip not only allowed students the chance to learn, expand knowledge, but also equipped them with the skills necessary to integrate internationally and become global citizens.