Airport pickup, SIM cards and bank accounts: the unglamorous retention work

The first week determines a great deal, and most of what goes wrong in it is logistical rather than academic.

The three problems

• Getting from the airport. A student arriving at night in an unfamiliar city, tired, with luggage and no local phone, is the scenario every parent has imagined. A meeting service, or precise instructions in Vietnamese with a backup contact, removes it.
• A working phone. Without connectivity a student cannot navigate, contact anyone, or reassure their family. This should be solved on day one, and ideally arranged before departure.
• A bank account. Often the slowest item, and the one that leaves students relying on cash or foreign cards with poor rates for weeks. Tell them in advance what documents are needed and how long it takes.

Why this is a recruitment matter

The report home goes out within days and travels through the networks that produce your next cohort. A smooth first week is an asset; a chaotic one is a story that circulates for years.

The cheapest version

A pre-departure document in Vietnamese covering these three items, plus one named person to contact on arrival. No budget required, and it outperforms most of what is spent on the preceding twelve months.

Arrival support for your students: VNIS Recruitment Center (VRC) →