Two French Students Want to Volunteer in Vietnam

	Summer International Volunteer Exchange Program Take Places in Quang Ngai
	International Youths Volunteer to Build Houses in Vietnam

At just 19 years old, Émilie Petitpas and Enora Richard-Mettay, both second-year students at the La Flèche Nursing School (Sarthe province, northwestern France), have set their sights on the world.

Émilie Petitpas and Enora Richard-Mettay, two second-year students at the La Flèche Nursing School (Sarthe province, northwestern France), featured in Ouest-France. (Photo: Screenshot/VNA)

In the next academic year, they plan to complete their five-week final internship at a hospital in Vietnam while also spending their free time volunteering at an orphanage.

The idea came to them at the beginning of 2025. Together, they founded the association “ESI (étudiants en soins infirmiers) au cœur de Bien Hoa” (which roughly translates to “Nursing Students with a Heart for Bien Hoa”) to make their plan a reality.

Bien Hoa City, with a population of about 700,000, is located more than 30 km east of Ho Chi Minh City, across the Dong Nai River.

There, the two students will have accommodation and a work environment arranged by the Mission Stage Association, which has been bringing international students to hospitals in Vietnam for internships since 1997.

Speaking to Ouest-France, Émilie and Enora said they will have 35 hours of hospital internship per week. Outside of work, they will visit Hoa Mai Orphanage, which cares for approximately 30 children and young people from newborns to 22 years old, to organize games and activities and provide emotional support.

In addition to preparing themselves professionally and mentally, Émilie and Enora also want to collect toys, books, and essential supplies for the orphanage.

To fund their trip and support the facility, they are collaborating with ESI to organize several fundraising activities in France, including a raffle on October 5 in La Flèche, selling chocolate during the Christmas season, launching a crowdfunding campaign through Leetchi.com, and hosting other events throughout the 2025-2026 school year.

The two students said: “Our goal is to raise around 8,000 euros (9,416 USD). Whatever the amount we collect, all of it will be sent to the orphanage in Vietnam.”

International Students Cultivate Vietnam-Russia Ties Homeland students abroad help introduce Vietnamese culture in Russia.

Da Lat Students Gain Knowledge about Korean Culture From International Volunteers On June 26, a group of volunteer lecturers and students from Gyeongsang National University (South Korea) held a cultural exchange program at Da Thanh Primary ...