In today’s rapidly changing world, discussions about economic and monetary crises often dominate the headlines. Yet, a quieter, deeper crisis has been unfolding for years — the post-degree crisis. It’s a global phenomenon that reshapes how we view knowledge, work, and success. Here at Vietnamese Language Journey, we explore how this shift impacts not only education systems but also the very meaning of human potential.
1. Degree Inflation and the Rise of the Educated Unemployed
Across the world, a growing number of highly educated young people — often with master’s degrees — struggle to find stable, well-paying jobs. Years of study and student debt lead many to work in unrelated service jobs.
The reason? Degree inflation. As universities expanded access to higher education, degrees became so common that they lost their value as a mark of distinction. Just like a currency weakened by overprinting, the oversupply of degrees has caused a “knowledge recession.”
At Vietnamese Language Journey, we believe this is not just an economic challenge but a psychological one. When young people are told that studying hard guarantees a bright future, only to find the opposite, the result is disillusionment — a loss of faith in the promise of education itself.
2. Artificial Intelligence and the End of Humanity’s Monopoly on Knowledge
If degree inflation was the spark, artificial intelligence (AI) is the fuel accelerating the blaze. Since ChatGPT’s launch in late 2022, the world has changed irreversibly. AI can reason, write, analyze, and even create — faster, cheaper, and often more accurately than humans.
This marks the end of humanity’s monopoly on intellectual labor. White-collar professions — law, consulting, journalism, accounting — once seen as the top of the social pyramid, now face automation. Meanwhile, skilled trades and service jobs, grounded in physical or emotional intelligence, are safer than ever.
At Vietnamese Language Journey, we view this as both a challenge and an opportunity. In this new era, the value of a person no longer lies in what they know, but in how they think, connect, and create. Knowledge has become abundant — what’s rare now is wisdom.
3. The Oversupply of Elites: When Too Many Minds Compete for Too Few Seats
Peter Turchin, a sociologist from the University of Connecticut, calls this phenomenon the “overproduction of elites.” Too many talented, well-educated individuals are competing for too few leadership positions. When opportunities don’t match ambitions, frustration brews — and history shows how such tensions can lead to social upheaval.
In the digital era, disillusioned intellectuals no longer need to wait for revolutions; social media and AI tools can instantly turn individual frustration into collective movements.
Rethinking Education in the AI Age
The traditional model of education — study, graduate, work — no longer fits the modern world. In the 1980s, what you learned at age 20 could last a career. Today, the half-life of knowledge is just two years.
This means universities must evolve, or risk irrelevance. Learning should no longer be a one-time event but a lifelong journey. The future belongs to those who keep learning, adapting, and reinventing themselves — principles at the heart of Vietnamese Language Journey.
We promote an education model that emphasizes:
- Thinking over memorizing: teaching students to solve problems that machines cannot.
- Collaboration with industry: turning universities into “living laboratories” connected to real-world projects.
- Respect for vocational skills: acknowledging that skilled labor is the backbone of every nation.
- Lifelong learning: enabling individuals to move flexibly between vocational, university, and professional training.
The solution isn’t to study less — it’s to learn differently: deeper, broader, and more humanly.
Vietnam at the Crossroads
Vietnam stands today where Western countries were 15 years ago: a rapidly expanding higher education system with a slower-evolving job market. The government’s current reforms — merging small universities into larger, multidisciplinary ones — are an important first step. But to succeed, reforms must focus not only on structure but also on substance: what we teach and why.
As Vietnamese Language Journey advocates, education must inspire curiosity, creativity, and compassion — qualities that no algorithm can replace.
A Call to Global Thinkers
Vietnamese Language Journey now calls upon intellectuals, educators, and graduates from English-speaking countries — the UK, the USA, and Australia — to take part in a new experiment:
Come to Vietnam, study Vietnamese, and contribute your knowledge to a nation building its own emerging financial and technological centers.
Join us, not just to learn a language, but to become part of Vietnam’s next chapter — where East meets West, and knowledge meets purpose.
Vietnamese Language Journey welcomes you to a land where learning never stops, and where your degree can find new meaning in a rising economy that values both intellect and innovation.
👉 You can learn more about our Vietnamese courses on our official website Vietnamese Language Journey!
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