Rear Adm. Nguyen was born in Vung Tau, Vietnam and raised in Chicago and Southern California.  He was commissioned an Ensign in the Civil Engineer Corps in 1996 and lateral transferred to the Foreign Area Officer community in 2006. Before joining the United States Navy, he worked for Rockwell International aerospace division and Unocal Oil refineries in Southern California. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California at Santa Barbara and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Southern California.
 
His experience in the Indo-Pacific region includes Public Works Officer/Resident Officer in Charge of Construction for Navy Region Singapore; Desk Officer for Cambodia, Philippines and Vietnam at Commander U.S. Pacific Fleet, International Plans & Policy Directorate (N51); Assistant Naval Attaché to India at U.S. Embassy New Delhi; Naval Attaché to China at U.S. Embassy Beijing; and Assistant Chief of Staff – Plans & Engagements (N5) at Commander U.S. SEVENTH Fleet.
 
Other assignments include Naval Construction Support Unit TWO, Port Hueneme, California; Commander Navy Region Northwest, Bangor, Washington; Engineering Field Activity Northwest, Bremerton, Washington; Navy Personnel Command, Millington, Tennessee; and Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, Honolulu, Hawaii.  He is a graduate of U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas and Joint and Combined Warfighting School at Norfolk, Virginia.
 

Last Updated: 14 August 2024