The Vietnam Education Foundation (VEF) is an independent U.S. federal government agency established in 2000 by the U.S. Congress to further develop the bilateral relationship between the United States and Vietnam through educational exchange. As its flagship program, VEF supports Vietnamese nationals as Fellows, who are engaged in graduate studies, primarily doctorates, in the sciences (natural, physical, and environmental), engineering, mathematics, medicine (public health and biomedical sciences), and technology at universities throughout the United States. In addition, VEF supports two other exchange programs in these same fields: (1) Vietnamese post-docs pursuing professional development activities and research projects at U.S. universities; and (2) U.S. professors teaching at Vietnamese universities. As a result, VEF is contributing at multiple levels to the ongoing reconciliation between the United States and Vietnam. VEF is governed by a Board of Directors including U.S. Cabinet Members, U.S. Senators and Representatives, and Presidential Appointees. The VEF headquarters is located in Arlington, Virginia, which is in close proximity to Washington, D.C., while the VEF Vietnam Field Office is located in Hanoi, Vietnam.