Leading Change: How Phetmany Viyadeth is shaping
Laos’s global education pathways for Lao youth 

Growing up in Luang Prabang, Phetmany Viyadeth, quickly understood the common initial challenges faced by many students with global aspirations: not knowing where to begin the search for study-abroad information, scholarship details, and application guidance. This ambiguity meant that navigating the requirements for scholarships, applications, and certificates was often a complex, solitary task, demanding significant personal time, resources, and emotional focus.
Phetmany, having successfully conquered every step independently, transformed this challenge into her mission. Her personal experience now provides the essential blueprint, ensuring that the path to the world’s best universities is no longer a search in the dark, but a well-lit, supported launch.
Those early struggles shaped her purpose.
Today, Phetmany is the founder of UTD Education, one of Laos’s leading organizations in international education planning. Her mission is straightforward but powerful,  to ensure that Lao students no longer walk the long, confusing path she once did.

A Mission Backed by Real Impact

Under her leadership, UTD Education has achieved milestones rarely seen in the Lao education sector:

1. 500+ Lao students have secured scholarships
   
2. More than USD 2.5 million in financial awards granted
   
3. 100+ students every year gain structured overseas opportunities 
4. 5,000+ students trained in English and academic programs
   
5. 500+ students awarded scholarships totaling USD 2.5 million+
   
6. 350+ global university partnerships established
   
   

Yet, behind these achievements is a deeper commitment: building equal access to information, preparation, and opportunities for students across Laos — regardless of background.
“I walked the difficult path so the next generation doesn’t have to,” Phetmany reflects.
Through UTD, she ensures students receive the right academic planning, the right certificates, the right timing, and the right direction from the start, saving families both time and unnecessary costs.

More than study abroad — A vision for national development

For Phetmany, sending students overseas is only part of the story.  Her goal is to develop young people who will one day return to Laos with global skills and perspectives that can contribute to national growth.
Every student she mentors represents future potential:

1. future engineers
   
2. future doctors
   
3. future entrepreneurs
   
4. future leaders

She sees her younger self in each of them — ambitious, hopeful, and eager to build something meaningful.
“Our youth deserve to dream globally — and return home ready to contribute meaningfully,” she emphasizes. 

Leadership Driven by Purpose

Those who work with Phetmany describe her leadership as warm yet disciplined, humble yet driven. She is known for sitting with parents for hours, listening carefully to students’ concerns, and ensuring each decision is made in the best interest of their long-term future.
Her approach blends personal experience, empathy, and a deep understanding of international education systems , creating a level of guidance that many families say they’ve never had before. 

A Growing Movement Across Laos

What began as one person’s difficult journey has now grown into a nationwide movement:

1. More schools are partnering with UTD
   
2. More families are planning earlier for overseas education
   
3. More students are achieving competitive certification pathways
   
4. More young people are stepping confidently into global opportunities
   
   

 Because of Phetmany’s work, hundreds of Lao students now believe that international education is not out of reach, it is achievable with the right preparation and support.
She didn’t just change her own life.
She is helping change the future of an entire generation. 

(Latest Update August 9, 2025)