The Vietnamese National Military Academy is located in the pineforested highland of II Corps, at an altitude of 5,000 feet, near the city of Dalat. It stands proud and tall as a living symbol of the Republic of Vietnam's hope for the future. Here nearly 1,000 cadets are pursuing a four-year course of instruction that mixes the military with the academic. This course of instruction is designed to prepare the VNMA graduate to serve his country during a critical period of nation building under some of the most difficult conditions that any nation has had to face.

The mission of the Vietnamese National Military Academy is to instruct and train cadets so that each graduate shall have the potentialities essential to his progressive and continuous development throughout a career as an officer in the regular Army, as demonstrated by:

1. The outstanding qualities and attributes necessary for a leader.

2. A profound military background.

3. A broad education consisting of technical knowledge equivalent to that of engineer graduates from civil colleges, enriched by a liberal amount of the social sciences.

Inherent in this mission are the following objectives:

1. Mental: Provide a university level education in the arts and sciences and develop the powers of analysis so that the mind may reason to a logical conclusion.

2. Moral: Develop in the cadet a high sense of duty and the attributes of character, discipline, and motivation essential to the profession of arms.

3. Physical: Develop in the cadet those physical attributes essential to the lifetime career as a regular officer of the Armed Forces of Vietnam.

In order to accomplish its mission, the academy is organized into a headquarters and three major sub-units:

(1) The Academic College (2) The Military Instruction Directorate (MID), and (3) The Staff and Support Group.

The Academic College is charged with teaching all academic subjects. Although VNMA employs some civilians in the Academic College, most instructors are RVNAF commissioned officers possessing at least a bachelor's degree from a Vietnamese or foreign university. The academy offers selected instructors the opportunity to pursue graduate studies at certain foreign universities.

The Military Instruction Directorate teaches all military subjects and physical education and is responsible for the command, discipline, and the morale of the cadet regiment. Officers assigned to MID are mostly combat veterans and usually graduates of VNMA.

The Staff coordinates all administrative, logistical and other support which is furnished primarily by the Support Group.

The Superintendent, Major General Lam Quang Tho, is serving his second tour of duty in this capacity and has been closely associated with the development and growth of VNMA. He has also Superintendent from 1965-1966, which has a critical time in the Academy's development when it was converting to a four-year curriculum. The Supe is also a member of Class 3 which graduated on July 1, 1951. He attended the Armor Officer Advanced Course at Fort Knox in 1956 and graduated from the Command and General Staff Course at Ft. Leavenworth in 1964.

The Academy is housed primary in structures that were built beginning in 1961. Cadets live either two or three to a room in four 100-room barracks. They eat in a messhall which has a single-sitting capacity of 1200. The cadets are organized into a Cadet Regiment consisting of two battalions. Each battalion has five companies. There is a Cadet Chain of Command as well as a "plebe" system similar to those at West Point. The cadets of VNMA have a close contact with West Point through a former member of their present senior class. Class 25 is very proud of the fact that one of its members, Cadet Pham Minh Tam, was selected to be the first Vietnamese cadet to attend West Point. Cadet Tam is a member of the USMA Class of 1974.

Unlike U.S. academies, there are no direct appointments to VNMA. To be eligible for admission, candidates must meet the following requirements:

1. Be between 17 and 22 years of age.

2. Possess Vietnamese citizenship.

3. Never have been married and when admitted, agreed not to marry until after graduation.

4. Have an unblemished record.

5. Be physical fit and have a minimum height of 1.60 meters (5'4").

6. Possess a Baccalaureate II Diploma in Sciences or Mathematics or an equivalent foreign diploma.

7. Pass VNMA entrance examination.

The history of the Academy dates back to December of 1948 when the French founded the Vietnamese Regular Officers' School in Hue. In 1950, this school was moved to Dalat and renamed "Ecole Militaire Inter-Armes." Until 1954, all commanders of the school were French officers, as were the instructors. The Vietnamese gradually assumed control after the Geneva Accords and the name was changed to "Truong Vo Bi Lien Quan, Da Lat" which is a translation of the early French name.

In July of 1959, the President of South Vietnam signed a Decree establishing "Truong Vo Bi Quoc Gia (The Vietnamese National Military Academy) as a university-level institution. Although this theoretically put VNMA on the same educational level as the University of Saigon, Hue and Dalat, the program of instruction was only three years and equal status was not realized. A four-year curriculum was approved in October of 1961, but was in effect less than a year since in August, 1962, due to the shortage of junior officers, VNMA was placed on a wartime program of two years. Realizing the need for men who could help build a nation, Premier Ky, on 13 December 1966, signed a Decree which reestablished a four-year curriculum and placed VNMA on equal terms with any other four-year college level school in Vietnam.

The current VNMA curriculum is generally modeled after that of West Point. However, VNMA does triple-duty as it now serves as the Vietnamese equivalent of not only West Point, but also Annapolis and the Air Force Academy. Class 25, which will graduate on 15 December, will be the first class to have undergone tri-service training which was initiated in 1970. The basic concept of tri-service training is that for the first two years all cadets receive identical academic and military programs of instruction. At the end of the second year, the cadet class is divided into three services: Army, Navy, and Air Force, with 1/8 of the class strength going Navy, 1/8 to the Air Force and 3/4 for the Army. During their last two years, the Navy and Air Force cadets will receive a modified academic POI and will undergo military training seasons with their respective services. As at West Point, the school year is divided into two periods : the academy year and the military training season. At VNMA the academy year runs from mid-March until mid-December and is divided into two semesters. The military training season, during which the cadets are granted a two-week leave, runs from mid-December until mid-March. The months of December, January, February, and March provide the best weather for overall military training in the Dalat area, which is the reason for the different from the schedule cycle used in the United States.

The academic curriculum is comprised of courses in the pure sciences, the applied sciences and the humanities. In the pure sciences-mathematics, physics, and chemistry- the cadets learn to think logically, to separate the essential information from the non-essential, and to reason to a logical conclusion. The courses provide the background for the cadet to move on to the applied sciences which will prepare him for his mission as a nation builder. Courses such as civil engineering, highway and airfield engineering, mapping, and surveying are designed to develop skilled technicians who can accurately map the country, survey and build new roads and railroads, develop and maintain port facilities, and construct and repair bridges. In electrical engineering, the cadets in addition to learning the electrical functioning of radios, vehicles, and weapons, gain knowledge that will enable them to assist in rural electrification.

To balance out the academic curriculum, approximately 40% of the POI is devoted to the social sciences and the humanities. Some of the courses will have a direct and practical value, while others are designed to deepen his understanding of the world and to contribute to his cultural development. Shown below is a breakdown of the 1972 curriculum by class. Class 25 will graduate in December 1972, Class 26 in December 1973, etc...

Military training accounts for about 50% of the four-year program of instruction. Each cadet participates in an active physical training program to include four years of Taekwondo, the Korean form of judo-karate. All Army cadets are required to attend the ARVN airborne and ranger courses. The MacArthur theory that constant competition and emphasis on athletic excellence will instill an aggressiveness and determination to win that will serve well on the battlefield is very much in evidence at VNMA.

The cadets also receive training in fundamental military knowledge and skills. At the same time, through courses in psychological warfare, military history, and leadership, they are equipped with a professional background to prepare them to higher command and staff position.

The resolve of the graduates of VNMA to reconstruct their country, to protect their land, and to heighten the prestige of their nation is embodied in the Academy Crest. The crest, pictured earlier, consisted of a blue shield with the map of Vietnam superimposed in white. Encircling Vietnam is a golden dragon, outlined in red, clutching a sword in his teeth. The blue represents the high spirit of the cadets, while the red represents the blood sacrificed by the Vietnamese in defense of their country. The dragon represents the legendary father of the Vietnamese race and the sword represents the possession of arms and the way in which Vietnam is prepared to defend itself.

VNMA already has produced many of the present leaders of Vietnam. President Nguyen Van Thieu graduated with Class 1 in 1948, when the school was located in Hue. President Thieu has also served two terms as Superintendent (1955-1956 and 1957-1959), a distinction shared only by the present Superintendent.

In closing, one cannot help but compare the birth and development of VNMA with that of West Point. In the early and middle 1800's the United States was faced with a similar environment-the development of national resources, armed conflicts, and the extension of government control. For their contribution to nation development and military success, West Point graduates won acclaim not only as engineers and soldiers, but also as statesmen, diplomats, and industrialists. VNMA now seeks to produce such men to assume vital roles of leadership and to serve the country well and devotedly. We may be proud that the Long Gray Line has helped to point the way.