For partners 
For many years, Vietnam was associated primarily with a strong interest in overseas education: thousands of Vietnamese students went to study in Australia, the United Kingdom, France, and the United States every year, and families viewed an international degree as an important investment in the future.
Today the country is beginning to play a completely different role — Vietnam is striving not only to send students abroad, but is itself becoming an attractive destination for international education!
This course is supported at the state level: the authorities are actively developing cooperation with foreign universities, attracting international partners and creating conditions for new educational projects to emerge. Currently, around 20,000 foreign students are studying in Vietnam, but over the next 5 years the country expects to nearly double this figure — to 35,000.
One of the most notable examples of international education in Vietnam remains RMIT University Vietnam. The Australian university has been operating in the country for 25+ years and remains the only fully foreign university branch in Vietnam. Today, around 12,000 students study here, with the majority being Vietnamese citizens; all programs are taught in English and meet the academic standards of the Melbourne campus.
In recent years, transnational education (TNE) has been actively developing in Vietnam: around 200 programs already operate, created jointly with foreign universities, primarily from Australia, America and Germany.
Experts compare Vietnam's current stage of development to how Malaysia rapidly developed on the international educational stage in the late 1990s.
Particular attention is paid to ensuring that education is closely linked to the needs of the economy: universities actively cooperate with employers, offer students internships and practical training, and companies are increasingly involved in preparing future specialists. This approach helps graduates find jobs more quickly and build careers in an international environment.
The country's economic growth influences higher education priorities. Following 8% GDP growth last year, the authorities are betting on the further development of science, technology and innovation, and universities are therefore being encouraged to expand programs in STEM: natural sciences, technology, engineering and mathematics. Against this backdrop, research activity is also growing. For example, RMIT University Vietnam plans to expand research projects and doctoral studying programs — the university is already developing research directions jointly with the Australian campus and studies 100+ PhD students.
In addition to international branches, Vietnam is also developing its own model of globally-oriented universities. One such project is the University of Science and Technology of Hanoi, known as Vietnam France University: it was created as part of a state program to modernize higher education through international cooperation. Today, around 4,000 students study at USTH in science and technology fields; the university maintains close ties with French partners, implements joint programs, and regularly invites foreign teachers and researchers. The Vietnamese authorities are actively investing in English language teaching and are striving to make it the second working language for international communication. Despite its French academic roots, teaching at USTH is conducted in English, which significantly expands opportunities for international cooperation and academic mobility.
The first results are already visible: last year around 200 foreigners came to USTH for exchange and internship programs, and approximately the same number of Vietnamese students were able to study abroad.
