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Nguyen Minh Chau

Master ofPublic Policy,

Vietnam Japan University, Vietnam

Year of Graduation: 2025

Currently employed as:

National Consultant working as Disability Inclusion Officer
at

United Nations Development Programme(UNDP) Vietnam

As a single mother with a physical disability, pursuing higher education was never an easy choice for me. For more
than ten years, I had dedicated my career to promoting disability inclusion in Viet Nam, working as a Disability Inclusion
—
especially in
Officer at UNDP Viet Nam. Yet, as I grew older and saw the increasing complexity of development work
—
times of economic crisis and UN restructuringI realised that without a stronger foundation in public policy and
research methods, I could easily be left behind. That realisation pushed me to take one of the boldest decisions of my
life: Studying a Master’s degree in Public Policy at Viet NamJapan University (VJU). However, this decision would have
–
been impossible without the support of the AUNDPPnet Scholarship.
-

Throughout my study journey, AUNDPPnet did not only support me financially but also emotionally and intellectually.
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The secretariat and coordinators regularly checked in, invited me to share Viet Nam’s experience at international
workshops, and connected me to a strong network of scholars and alumni across ASEAN who share a passion for
disability inclusion. This network became a source of inspiration and solidarity that helped me keep moving forward
when things got difficult.

Studying at VJU was one of the toughest challenges I have ever faced. Each course required multiple reports,
presentations, and group research projects comparing Viet Nam’s and international contexts. For someone like me
—
coming from a social work backgrounsubjects such as econometrics, statistics, and Japanese language were
d
—
completely new and extremely demanding. Many nights I worked until dawn to finish assignments, while my parents

had to take care of my daughter in my absence. There were moments I feltlike giving up. But I reminded myself of my
—
commitmentto AUNDPPnet, and most importantly, to my own growthI continued to push through. When I
-
and

—
finally completed my studies with a GPA of 3.65/4.0 and defended my thesis with a score of 9.4/10 (the highest in my
cohort), I felt a deep sense of fulfilment.

The first and most defining milestone was overcoming my academic struggles. Transitioning from the field of social
work to public policy and quantitative research was intimidating. I often found myself as the only person with a
disability in class, juggling academic pressure and motherhood responsibilities. But through sheer perseverance, I not
me
only adapted but excelled. By the end of the program, I achieved one of the highest GPAs in the Master’s

programme, andmy thesis defense result of 9.4/10 became aproud moment for me and my professors. This

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