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The thesis aims to investigate the issue of delaying marriage in Vietnam. The main research question of the thesis is: "What contributes to the decision of delaying marriage among Northern Vietnamese women?" In order to examine the topic, a qualitative research has been conducted. Participants were recruited via social media, and with the utilization of snowball sampling, 16 women were chosen to conduct in-depth interviews. The interview yields rich and meaningful data that brings several insights to answer the research question. First, there are four main factors that contribute to the decision of delaying marriage, which are (1) partner, (2) finance, (3) self-development, and (4) responsibility. These four factors are not mutually exclusive but rather complementary in the sense that some women require all four in order to feel ready to get married, while some only need one or two. Age is also another factor that should be considered, as the older women become, the more pressure society and family members put on them to get married. Overall, even though not every participant feels that they are ready to get married at the moment, all of them agree that marriage is important and eventually they will get married in the future. This is an important finding in the sense that marriage is still highly regarded in Vietnamese society, and unlike Japan or South Korea where many women choose to be single for life, in the Vietnamese context this remains uncommon and rare. As long as the power of the elders, particularly parents, prevail, it is unlikely that marriage will lose its appeal among Vietnamese women. This is due to the filial piety ideology in Vietnam that places parents at the top of the hierarchy inside the family. To explain these narratives of women, a theory has been proposed: women choose to delay marriage at this moment in order to increase their chances of securing a happy and long-lasting marriage in the future. Since marriage is highly appreciated in Vietnam and divorce is still being stigmatized, women might expect to remain in their marriage for as long as possible. Hence, without a good preparation in the four aspects mentioned above, women will not be able to feel secure in settling down, which leads to their decision of delaying marriage. With that being said, this theory can only be applicable in communities where marriage is regarded highly and women still believe that they will eventually get married someday. It might not hold true in a society where people do not feel the necessity of marriage and are comfortable with being single for the rest of their life.  

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