Speaking at the workshop, Director of VNU Science and Technology Department Tran Thi Thanh Tu said that the three-year implementing of the PHER Project had brought about effective programs and activities in support of VNU’s leaders, managers, scientists, lecturers, and graduate students; contributing to the improvement of research and teaching capacity; building and developing the university administration system as well as strengthening connections with businesses.

She said that the theme of the workshop closely followed the 4 pillars of the PHER Project, including innovating university administration, improving teaching quality, strengthening research and innovation capacity and promoting university–business linkage. The promoting of research capacity and scientific potential not only contributes to demonstrating the social responsibility of VNU, but is also an important condition for developing VNU into a university among the world’s 500 leading universities by 2030.

Also at the workshop, Deputy Director of the PHER project Nguyen Thi Mai Phuong shared that the issue of human research ethics and academic integrity was still a fairly new conceptual aspect in Vietnam. Implementing the development strategy of VNU to 2030, with a vision to 2045, VNU has been building a research and innovation university model in conformity with the requirements, policies and guidelines of the Party and State. Therefore, the establishment of a research ethics committee is extremely urgent. Ms. Mai Phuong also expressed her hope that at the workshop, there would be interesting exchanges and a lot of helpful knowledge for the participants.

Addressing the workshop, Dr. John R. Baumann from Indiana University shared about the role of Research Ethics Committee members, training in responsible conduct in research and the role of scientific managers in facilitating compliance with research ethics. He emphasized that integrity was the foundation of trust and respect in the academic community, and a prerequisite for sound scientific development. His presentation shed light on the principles and procedures of protecting human subjects in research, especially through the Human Research Protection Program.

The Human Research Protection Program is a vital component of a university’s research infrastructure. The mission of the program is to protect human subjects’ benefits. Each research paper must ensure its accuracy, comply with research ethics as well as ensure society’s benefits. Researchers also need to clearly define research as a contribution to the common body of knowledge for human development.

During the workshop, there were also exciting exchange and Q&A activities between the PHER experts, and VNU’s lecturers and graduate students.