Shared by Ms. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Lan – Parent of Le Ngoc Phuong Mai – freshman at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS) – one of the leading pharmacy schools in the United States.

Studying in the U.S. is not easy, and studying in the health sciences fields such as Medicine and Pharmacy is even more challenging for parents and students who dream of entering these universities in the U.S. Therefore, when Phuong Mai received a scholarship of over 100,000 USD from MCPHS, which is quite rare for a pharmacy school, could you share your feelings when you received the admission and scholarship letter from the school?
When we received the admission letter from MCPHS, our family was extremely happy. I still remember that it was around Christmas time, and some other prestigious universities also called Phuong Mai to say, “This is your Christmas gift. Congratulations on becoming a student of our school!”
Reflecting on the first day I brought Phương Mai to the NEEC office at Alpha Tower on Nguyen Đinh Chieu street, I still feel emotional. At that time, I was very worried, anxious, and even confused. Phuong Mai was in 10th grade at Le Hong Phong High School (Ho Chi Minh City) and later received a full scholarship to study A-levels for two years in England. Back then, I wanted my daughter to pursue Pharmacy and receive as much university scholarship as possible. However, from my research, I learned that some U.S. universities do not accept international students in Medicine and Pharmacy, let alone offer scholarships. Fortunately, I met Mr. Cảnh, Ms. Mai, and the NEEC consultants like Ms. Vien.

During the first meeting with Mr. Cảnh, he talked and got to know my daughter. By the second meeting, he said something that I still remember: “This girl is 99% certain to get into a pharmacy school; now, the only question is how much scholarship she will receive.” Hearing this, our family felt like Aladdin meeting the magic lamp. At that time, Phuong Mai was studying in England, 12 hours behind Vietnam time, and submitting applications to the U.S., which was another 12 hours behind Vietnam time. Mr. Cảnh, Ms. Vien, and the other consultants at NEEC closely followed and guided us very diligently, making the process smooth and successful. And today, with such a fulfilling result, I sincerely thank Mr. Tran Duc Canh, Ms. Đào Mai, Ms. Vien, and all the other teachers at NEEC.
3 CRITERIA FOR A GOOD STUDY ABROAD CONSULTANCY
You have attended quite a few study abroad seminars to seek opportunities for your daughter. Could you share your experience in accompanying your child in preparing the application for U.S. universities?
Our family has two daughters. The elder one received a full scholarship up to the PhD level, so the younger one also wanted to win a scholarship. I started researching when my daughters were in 7th or 8th grade, not just when they were in 11th or 12th grade. I attended every seminar. And not just in the U.S., but in other countries like Australia, Canada, and Finland.

When attending a seminar, there are two key issues to consider. First is school selection. You must engage directly with the schools, thoroughly research and explore to understand what the highest scholarship available is. But that is only the necessary condition; the sufficient condition is that you must find a reliable consultancy center. I visited more than 30 consulting companies, and through that, I identified the one that met my criteria. What did I need?
Firstly, the founder of that company must have vision. They must know where to place your child in the right spot. Later, when Mai was accepted and received a scholarship of up to 1 million dollars, I was completely overwhelmed. I narrowed it down to 3 schools in the final selection: two with a Pharmacy program and one where you could transition to Pharmacy after studying another major. At that time, our family didn’t know how to decide, so we met with Mr. Canh for advice. Then I took Mai to visit some states in the U.S. and finally decided on MCPHS as advised by Mr. Canh. This school offered a substantial scholarship, though not the highest, but it was the best fit for my daughter. I went back to meet Mr. Canh to thank him for choosing the right school for Mai. So, when choosing a consultancy, you need a leader with Heart, Vision, and the ability to place your child in the right place. NEEC has that.
Secondly, the consultant must be Vietnamese, to understand and easily communicate with you without needing a translator. Besides, the consultant must be knowledgeable about the U.S. education system and specific fields, in my case, the Pharmacy field in the U.S. Some directors of consultancies don’t know much about Pharmacy, and when I attended seminars, they translated Pharmacy as Medicine instead of Pharmacy, which is incorrect. Mr. Canh is very knowledgeable about Pharmacy and many other fields in the U.S.
The third and most important thing is that they must know which school is the best fit for your child. Mr. Canh excels at this.
And what else does NEEC have? In my case, the application deadline was tight, my child was in England with a different time zone, and I needed a consultancy that could handle our specific circumstances. Fortunately, I found NEEC, which met those requirements and was extremely dedicated, diligent, and sincere.
Once again, I sincerely thank Mr. Tran Duc Canh and the NEEC team for all they have done for Phuong Mai.