Shaping the Future of STEM: EPAM Vietnam’s Youth Mentorship with Passerelles Numériques Vietnam

Shaping the Future of STEM: EPAM Vietnam’s Youth Mentorship with Passerelles Numériques Vietnam

At EPAM, we care deeply about the community, and we are proud that our engineers embody this value. This year, EPAM Vietnam celebrated its third consecutive year of partnership with Passerelles Numériques Vietnam (PNV) — an NGO that supports underprivileged young people through an innovative educational approach that combines key digital skills with professional skills.

Through our collaboration with PNV’s mentorship program, we have proudly demonstrated how the efforts of our engineers as mentors, have positively impacted the growth and future of young students.

Each EPAM mentor was paired with a group of six PNV students to provide technical and moral support for their graduation projects. This is a significant challenge and an essential time for PNV students, which consisted of applying AI to build a practical, complex application within a short period of time. EPAM mentors successfully leveraged this opportunity to support the young students in stepping out of their comfort zones, building confidence and shaping or strengthening their ideas about their career paths.

As Hoàng Thùy Trang, Director of PNV, shared: “What they need most, and what EPAM provides, is a tangible, hands-on experience that helps them apply what they have learned and build confidence. This comprehensive engagement has helped create long-term, positive change not just for the students but for their families, too. We truly value EPAM’s partnership.”

An Incredible Journey of Experimentation and Self-Discovery

For many students at PNV, working on a graduation project became a place for real growth — technical, personal and professional.

Each student’s project was unique, from LumiSkin (an app using AI to detect skin health) and WearWise (a fashion e-commerce app with virtual fitting), to BallUp (an app that supports booking sports fields), GreenVision (an app to monitor plant health) and Dodo (a booking app). In addition to learning technical skills, students were able to practice identifying issues, problem solving and self-advocating for support. These soft skills may sound simple, but they are critical and the mentorship program successfully helped PNV mentees cultivate these skills.

Nguyễn Lâm Nhật, one of the top-performing students at PNV,    excitedly shared: “My mentor didn’t just fix things for me; he helped me understand the tools and gave me the space to solve them.” 

The relationship between mentors and mentees is also remarkable and is one of the strongest values of this mentoring program. We’re also excited to share that PNV students from the 2022–2025 cohort will be graduating this October. When asked, "Who do you want to become in 10 years?" one student even responded: "I hope to become Mr. Duc Tran - the EPAM mentor for our group - someone who always listens and offers their own perspective while ensuring not to judge anyone."

Impact That Lasts

“The recent cycle happened while students were applying for graduation internships,” mentioned Ms. Trang. “All 38 of them successfully secured placements in 14 different IT companies in Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City. Five have already been offered full-time roles, even before completing their internships. EPAM mentors were part of that success, no doubt!”

Thanks to the guidance and dedication of EPAM Vietnam, these students are now stepping into real tech roles across Vietnam, more prepared, more confident and more inspired than ever.

The Future. Made Real.

It should also be said that PNV teachers have done a fantastic job providing training and workshops for their students. As for our EPAM team, we are delighted to strengthen the students’ knowledge with real-world expertise and experience, showing them what it means to be hungry, to strive for excellence, to be open-minded and ambitious. These are the stepping stones for the students to be even more prepared to start a new chapter and confidently enter a challenging labor market.

The cooperation between EPAM Vietnam and Passerelles Numériques is concrete proof that with care and a positive mindset, a mentoring program can achieve so much more than just a little support. It is a legacy. Every hour spent by EPAM mentors, every piece of guidance and encouragement, helps shape the professionals who will lead the tech industry tomorrow.

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