VinUniversity Assistant Professorships (VAP) in Vietnam89 Views

Introduction to VinUniversity Assistant Professorships

The VinUniversity Assistant Professorships (VAP) in Vietnam are a flagship early-career faculty awards created to attract outstanding young scholars from around the world. The program is part of VinUniversity’s “Legacy of Excellence” initiative and aligns with its long-term vision of becoming a top-100 global university.

Through these prestigious assistant professorships, VinUniversity offers competitive research funding, generous start-up packages, and dedicated PhD scholarships. As a result, successful candidates receive both a full-time faculty appointment and the resources needed to build impactful research groups in Vietnam.

This article explains what the VinUniversity Assistant Professorships offer, who should apply, the research areas covered, and how to prepare a strong application. It also shares expert tips for early-career researchers comparing assistant professor jobs in Asia or globally.

Why the VinUniversity Assistant Professorships Matter

The VAP program is more than a traditional faculty recruitment exercise. It is an integrated early-career award that combines tenure-track style responsibilities with substantial research investment.

Firstly, VinUniversity positions the program as a launchpad for visionary scholars. It targets researchers who want to pursue bold ideas in areas such as artificial intelligence, sustainability, health sciences, and business innovation.

Secondly, the assistant professorships sit within a larger ecosystem that includes:

• • Leaders 10 – distinguished professors leading strategic research directions.
  • Faculty 200 – research-focused faculty
    across disciplines.
  • Researchers 200 – fully funded research fellowships for recent PhD graduates.

Together, these initiatives create a layered talent pipeline, which makes the VinUniversity Assistant Professorships especially attractive for early-career academics who value strong mentoring, interdisciplinary collaboration, and long-term career prospects in Vietnam and the wider region.

Eligibility: Who the VAP Program Is For

Core Eligibility Criteria

According to current calls, VinUniversity Assistant Professorships welcome early-career researchers who meet several key requirements:

• • Hold a PhD, MD, or equivalent earned in or after 2019.
  • Demonstrate a strong research track record, including high-impact publications, awards, or notable recognition.
  • Show clear potential to lead independent and collaborative research of international significance.
  • Commit to a full-time faculty appointment at VinUniversity in Hanoi.
  • Clinician-scientists engaged in translational or clinical research are actively encouraged to apply.

In addition, eligibility extends to current VinUniversity faculty (below full professor rank) who joined within the last 12 months, although they may apply only once to the VAP program.

Disciplinary Focus and Priority Areas

Research areas linked to the broader Legacy of Excellence initiative cover five major domains:

• • AI, computing and emerging technologies (including robotics, data science, digital twins,
    semiconductor technologies).
  • Sustainability, energy and urban innovation (renewable energy, green technologies, smart cities, infrastructure).
  • Health and life sciences (precision medicine, smart health, biotechnology, population health).
  • Business and management (entrepreneurship, digital economy, green finance, service innovation).
  • Social sciences and humanities (media, sociology, Asian studies, international relations, interdisciplinary humanities).

Therefore, the VAP program is ideal for scholars whose work sits at the interface of these themes and who want to build research that has clear societal impact in Vietnam and globally.

Key Features, Funding, and Benefits

Research Funding and Start-Up Package

One of the most distinctive aspects of the VinUniversity Assistant Professorships (VAP) in Vietnam is the scale of research funding attached to each award. Current calls indicate that successful candidates can receive:

• • Start-up research grants of up to
    • USD 1,000,000 total over five years for STEM experimental fields, and
    • USD 500,000 total over five years for other fields.
  • Up to two PhD full scholarships, each valued at around USD 200,000, to recruit and train doctoral students.
  • Dedicated laboratory and office space, together with access to advanced research infrastructure.
  • Institutional support for grant applications, research administration, and laboratory setup.

These benefits make the VAP competitively funded even when compared with assistant professor packages in high-income

countries. Consequently, early-career researchers can establish robust research groups from the start of their appointment.

Academic Environment and Long-Term Prospects

VAP awardees join VinUniversity as full-time assistant professors, with attractive remuneration and the potential for long-term contracts and leadership roles.

They work within an international faculty community that includes scholars trained at leading universities worldwide. In addition, many positions are co-located with research centers or Vingroup innovation units, which helps bridge academic work with industry and societal needs.

For a researcher considering an assistant professor position in Asia, the combination of generous research support, English-medium work environment, and ambitious institutional vision offers a compelling career platform.

Step-by-Step: How to Apply for VinUniversity Assistant Professorships

1. Review the Official Call and Research Areas

First, visit the Legacy of Excellence – VinUniversity page and the dedicated VAP job advertisement. These pages outline the program’s aims, thematic priorities, and application timelines, and they provide links to the VinUniversity careers portal.

You should confirm the current deadline; at the time of writing, the VinUniversity careers site lists 15 January 2026 as the closing date for the ongoing round. Future calls may use different schedules, so always rely on the latest notice.

2. Prepare Core Application Documents

The official call specifies a set of required documents. Applicants must normally submit

the following through the online application portal:

• • Cover letter describing your profile and explaining how you will contribute to VinUniversity.
  • Comprehensive CV with full publication list, citation metrics where relevant, awards, grants, and teaching experience.
  • Research statement summarizing your previous work, current projects, and long-term research vision.
  • Research project proposal (up to five pages) describing the major project you plan to pursue with VAP funding.
  • Contact details of three referees who can provide confidential letters on your potential.

Because incomplete applications are not considered, you should prepare and proofread every document before starting the online form.

3. Submit Via the VinUniversity Careers Portal

Next, you submit the application through the VinUniversity careers website at vinuni.talent.vn, selecting the VinUniversity Assistant Professorships (VAP) listing.

The portal allows you to upload your documents and provide basic information such as research fields, preferred departments, and contact details. After submission, shortlisted candidates are normally invited for interviews with an international selection panel and relevant academic leaders.

Tips, Common Mistakes, and Expert Advice

Align Your Proposal with VinUniversity’s Strategic Themes

Many candidates possess strong individual profiles but fail to explicitly connect their research plans to VinUniversity’s strategic areas, such as AI for health, sustainable cities, or green finance. Therefore, you should:

• • Map your work clearly onto at least one of the five core domains.
  • Highlight how your research can leverage Vietnam’s unique context, data, or policy questions.
  • Explain how your group could collaborate with existing centers or Faculty 200 hires.

Demonstrate Leadership and Independence

The VAP program is looking for future leaders, not only strong postdoctoral researchers. Consequently, your research statement should emphasize:

• • Projects where you played a leading intellectual role.
  • Your plan for building and supervising a research team, including PhD students.
  • How you will attract further funding beyond the initial start-up grant.

Avoid Frequent Application Pitfalls

Applicants sometimes weaken their chances through avoidable mistakes. The most common include:

1. 1. Overly generic cover letters that could apply to any university.
   2. Research proposals that read like extended literature reviews instead of focused, feasible projects.
   3. Ignoring teaching and mentoring contributions, even though these form an important part of the assistant professor role.

You can avoid these issues by tailoring each section carefully, seeking feedback from mentors, and ensuring that your documents present a coherent narrative.

Conclusion: Is a VinUniversity Assistant Professorship Right for You?

The VinUniversity Assistant Professorships (VAP) in Vietnam offer a rare combination of world-class research funding, ambitious institutional vision, and meaningful societal impact. For early-career academics who wish to build research groups in fields such as AI, sustainability, health sciences, business innovation, and social sciences, the program provides both security and freedom.

If you are an emerging scholar with a PhD obtained in or after 2019, a strong publication record, and a desire to shape the future of research and education in Southeast Asia, this assistant professorship can be a powerful career step.

You should now review the official program announcement, note the current deadline, and begin drafting your cover letter, research statement, and project proposal. With thoughtful preparation and strategic alignment to VinUniversity’s priorities, your application can stand out in this competitive global call.

Summary Table

Feature	Details
Program Name	VinUniversity Assistant Professorships (VAP)
Host Country	Vietnam (Vinhomes Ocean Park, Gia Lâm, Hanoi)
Funded By	VinUniversity, with support from Vingroup ecosystem and related research centers
Duration	Full-time faculty appointment, with start-up research funding for up to 5 years and potential long-term contracts
Study Mode	Full-time on-campus assistant professorship
Eligibility	Early-career researchers with PhD/MD (2019 or later), strong research track record, leadership potential, commitment to VinUniversity
Financial Support	Attractive salary; start-up grants up to USD 1,000,000 (STEM) or USD 500,000 (other fields); up to two fully funded PhD scholarships; lab and office space
Fields of Study	AI and computing, sustainability and energy, health and life sciences, business and management, social sciences and humanities
Deadline	Current call lists 15/01/2026; future rounds may vary, so applicants should confirm on the official careers portal
Official Website	Click here

References

Reference 1: VinUniversity Assistant Professorships (VAP) – Early-career award overview, eligibility criteria, funding package, and application documents. 

Reference 2: Legacy of Excellence – VinUniversity and related Vision 2030 recruitment initiatives (Faculty 200, Researchers 200, strategic research areas). 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)