Ministry of Education and Training directly manages two National Universities: Innovation in governance

GD&TĐ - From September 1, the Ministry of Education and Training officially directly manages two National Universities.

This is an important step to improve operational efficiency and ensure consistency in the national higher education system. This policy brings many advantages but also poses many challenges that need to be thoroughly recognized and resolved.

Spread the locomotive model to the entire system

According to Decree No. 201/2025/ND-CP stipulating the functions, tasks and powers of the National University (Decree 201), from September 1, 2025, the National University is a public higher education institution managed by the Ministry of Education and Training , has legal status, its own account and uses a seal with the national emblem. The functions of the National University are to provide training at all levels of higher education, conduct high-quality multidisciplinary and multidisciplinary scientific research and technology transfer; some of the training fields are leading in the country and highly ranked in the world.

Hanoi National University recognizes that Decree 201 has granted a high level of autonomy in the fields of training, scientific research, organizational structure, finance, international cooperation and high-quality human resource development. The modern university governance system is organized with clear decentralization and delegation of authority, with accountability attached...

Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Xuan Nhi - former Deputy Minister of Education and Training, said that the Ministry of Education and Training's official direct management of the two National Universities brings great advantages to the units. Accordingly, autonomy will be enhanced in training, research, organizational structure and finance. From there, it will help to discover, nurture talents and orient the development of specialized training programs, especially in the fields of science and technology.

According to Dr. Vu Quang - Principal of Ho Chi Minh City School of Education Management, the above change has positive significance, contributing to strengthening the unity in the university education management system; at the same time creating an equal environment in State management among educational institutions.

Emphasizing the three major benefits when two National Universities are managed by the Ministry of Education and Training, Dr. Vu Quang analyzed: first, it creates conditions for the management and training of educational managers to become focused and synchronized.

Second, strengthen the role of quality monitoring and assessment, because the Ministry of Education and Training will apply the same set of criteria for the entire system, ensuring transparency and fairness, even for leading units. Third, promote links and cooperation between the National University and other universities, helping to form a stronger research and training network.

Scientific research activities at Hanoi National University. Photo: VNU

Reconciling centralized management and university autonomy

Sharing the same view, Dr. Le Viet Khuyen - Vice President of the Association of Vietnamese Universities and Colleges said that the Ministry of Education and Training's direct management of the two National Universities is appropriate in both ethics and law and in accordance with objective laws. Thereby, it will create unity in direction and policy making.

Up to now, the two National Universities have been considered the “locomotives” of the higher education system. When under the Ministry of Education and Training, these two universities have more favorable conditions to access macro policies, quickly implement strategic programs, and at the same time create close coordination with units under the Ministry, thereby spreading the governance and academic model throughout the system.

In addition, when the Ministry of Education and Training directly manages, it means closer supervision of the quality of training, research, as well as the use of financial and human resources. This is an important condition for the two National Universities to continue to promote their pioneering role, while contributing to standardizing and raising the position of Vietnamese higher education in the international arena.

However, in addition to the advantages, Dr. Le Viet Khuyen commented that changing the management model poses many challenges. Firstly, reconciling centralized management and university autonomy - which is the advantage and characteristic of the two National Universities.

If the management mechanism is too bureaucratic and rigid, it may lead to the inhibition of the dynamism and creativity of these two units. Secondly, the process of transforming the management model requires careful preparation in terms of personnel, finance, and coordination mechanism. Therefore, ensuring the stability of training and research activities in the initial stage will be a big challenge.

The Vice President of the Association of Vietnamese Universities and Colleges hopes that this will not only stop at changing the management unit, but will truly become a driving force to improve quality, develop academics and integrate internationally. “To do so, we need a strong determination to innovate, avoiding the situation of “old wine in new bottles”, Mr. Le Viet Khuyen emphasized.

He said that success or failure depends on the implementation method, especially flexibility in management, determination to improve quality and ensure university autonomy. When these two factors are harmonized, the two National Universities will continue to affirm their leading role, contributing to the strong development of Vietnamese higher education in the integration era.

Golden opportunity to improve the quality of university governance

Pointing out the significant challenges, Dr. Vu Quang shared that the National University leadership must proactively develop long-term strategies, make breakthrough decisions and take full responsibility for the results. This requires them to not only be good at financial and human resource management, but also have the capacity to manage risks, communicate and respond to crises.

“The biggest challenge does not lie in how much power the National University has, but in the capacity of managers to balance autonomy with accountability, turning dual pressure into a driving force for reform,” Dr. Vu Quang emphasized.

Affirming that this transfer is reasonable, Dr. Le Dong Phuong - former Director of the Center for Higher Education Research (Vietnam Institute of Educational Sciences) analyzed: Previously, many activities of the National University were self-designed and self-operated, making it difficult for the Ministry of Education and Training to grasp and lack coordination. Now, concentrating under one authority will help the State manage more consistently and transparently, especially in the context of two very large National Universities, each with 50,000 - 70,000 students.

However, Dr. Phuong also frankly acknowledged that autonomy always comes with challenges. When given increased autonomy and centralized supervision, the National University is forced to find a way to balance academic innovation and common development goals. “Bringing them under one management will be more uniform, and the Government will be less confused because it does not have to directly manage two specific universities, but the important thing is that the specific mechanism of the National University must still be maintained to promote its leading role,” said Dr. Le Dong Phuong.

In fact, Decree 201 clearly stipulates a separate mechanism for the National University, considering it a special model with legal status, level I budget estimates, use of the National Emblem seal and high autonomy in training, research and international cooperation.

According to Dr. Vu Quang, this mechanism is both an advantage and a challenge. The advantage is that the National University can take the lead in testing policies, attracting resources, and creating a ripple effect for the entire system. But there is also the risk of reducing inherent flexibility, causing difficulties in coordination, increasing accountability pressure, and affecting investment resources.

From the perspective of training managers, Dr. Vu Quang expects that the innovation of the National University management model will become a “golden” opportunity to improve the quality of university governance. “This is the time to turn mere administrative training into professional leadership training, contributing to the success of future university education innovation,” he affirmed.

It can be seen that, although there are still many concerns, transferring the two National Universities to the management of the Ministry of Education and Training is opening up opportunities to form a unified and transparent university management system, while at the same time challenging the management capacity of the leadership and management team in the context of innovation and deep integration.

The country has more than 240 universities, of which two, Hanoi National University and Ho Chi Minh City National University, were established by the Government in 1993 and 1995 respectively, with a total training scale of about 150,000 students.

These two universities are considered leading training and research institutions, accounting for a large proportion of international publications and regional rankings. According to QS Asia 2025, both universities are in the top 300 in Asia. According to the plan, by 2030, Vietnam will have additional Hue and Da Nang National Universities.

Source: https://giaoducthoidai.vn/bo-gddt-truc-tiep-quan-ly-hai-dai-hoc-quoc-gia-doi-moi-quan-tri-post747944.html