Sunflower Mission Awards 59 University Scholarships to Vietnam's Future Engineers

HO CHI MINH CITY, VIETNAM--(Marketwired - Dec 10, 2015) - On December 1, 2015 the Sunflower Mission presented a total of 59 university scholarships to engineering and technology students in HCMC and Da Nang. The Sunflower Mission was founded in 2002 to improve the lives of people in Vietnam through educational assistance programs and to also provide life-long leadership skills for students in America. The Sunflower Mission Engineering & Technology Scholarship Program focuses on students who demonstrate excellence in their academic studies as well as demonstrated qualities of leadership and giving back to the community.

"These scholarships will help students finish their university studies and, we hope, build a career in the semiconductor industry either in integrated circuit (IC) design or software development. More importantly, these are students who will give back to the community. We chose students who understand that success is not just about money, it's not just about the individual -- it is also about working for a greater cause," said Duy-Loan Le, founding member of the Sunflower Mission and an independent member of the eSilicon board of directors.

"Sunflower Mission's corporate partner, eSilicon Corporation, the leading independent provider of semiconductor design and manufacturing solutions, made its Vietnam engineering team available to act as technical advisors and select the top 59 students. The program had a rigorous selection process that included writing an English essay, followed by an interview that focused on technical areas, leadership qualities and commitment to contribute to the community," said Bruce Newton, country director, eSilicon Vietnam. Mr. Newton also commented, "eSilicon Vietnam was also very pleased to provide five of the winning students with an offer of employment after they graduate to join our 300-strong engineering team in Vietnam."

"This year, we focused on students who have a passion for either IC design or software application development, because we believe the ability to design and support new technology is critical to a country's success," said Ms. Le.

eSilicon, a donor since 2005, administered the scholarship program with the guidance of Sunflower Mission and hosted the ceremonies at its Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City offices. The ceremony began with remarks from Ms. Le, a world-leading engineer who holds over 20 patents through her prior work with Texas Instruments and Mr. Jack Harding, president and CEO, eSilicon Corporation, eSilicon Vietnam's parent company. As part of the ceremony, the winning students participated in a lively question-and-answer session with an expert panel and were advised by Mr. Harding to "follow their career choice with passion and have the flexibility to adjust to changing circumstances." The ceremony ended with a scholarship presentation to the students and a photo session with family members and university representatives.

"By giving the students time to talk with executives and other VIPs, I want to show them life's possibilities," said Ms. Le. "Through our interactions, I hope to plant a seed in their hearts that they can change their lives, then grow to help change others' lives by connecting with the engineering community and the greater community of the Vietnamese people."

Channel 9, Ho Chi Minh City news coverage (in Vietnamese) can be viewed at https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=12bIw998fW4

About Sunflower Mission
 Sunflower Mission is a U.S.-based, nonprofit, non-political, non-governmental organization. It seeks to improve the future of Vietnam, one student at a time, by providing classrooms, educational materials and scholarships. Since 2002, it has built and maintained 144 classrooms and provided over 14,000 scholarships to students at all levels, from elementary school through college. Please visit www.sunflowermission.org to learn how you can participate.

About eSilicon
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