If you google ‘Vietnam,’ what are the results? Vietnam War, Vietnamese food, tourism
I recently had the opportunty to present my research and research methods at my Fulbright host institution, Vietnam National University – Social Sciences & Humanities University (Đại học Quốc gia Hà Nội – Trường Đại học Khoa học Xã hội và Nhân văn). The audience included professors, lecturers, researchers, and students from the department of history and libraries and information, senior professors on libraries, and a few archives personnel from the Hán-Nom research institute (Viện nghiên cứu Hán nôm).
I introduced my Ph.D. in history dissertation project “Builders & Users: The history of the Vietnamese Library 1887-1987”, but focused the discussion on methods of research in archives, the discipline of history, and the Ph.D. program in the United States. This was a tremendous opportunity for me to learn more about methods of research in Vietnam and receive feedback on my project and approach.
The talk is informal, a bit rough, (I was nervous!) but is part of my mission statement to share works in progress and diversify knowledge on Vietnam and also in Vietnamese.
