For the first time, Vietnam has 11 schools in the world's best university rankings.

For the first time, Vietnam has more than 10 representatives in the world's best university rankings, the largest number ever.

The University of Technology, part of the University of Da Nang , is a new representative from Vietnam in this year's THE ranking.

PHOTO: DA NANG UNIVERSITY

University rankings remain unchanged.

On the morning of October 9th, the Times Higher Education (THE) organization from the UK announced its 2026 ranking of the world's best universities. This year, Vietnam continues its growth momentum with two new additions: Nguyen Tat Thanh University in the 1001-1200 range, and Da Nang University in the 1501+ group. This brings the total number of ranked universities to 11, and this is also the highest achievement our country has attained in three of the world's most renowned rankings from the UK and China.

According to Dr. Tran Ai Cam, Rector of Nguyen Tat Thanh University, this result stems from "systematic investment in faculty, laboratory systems and research centers, along with promoting international publications and academic cooperation with universities and research institutes around the world." Being included in the prestigious world university rankings for the first time is a significant milestone, Dr. Cam shared in an official statement.

Notably, the remaining universities maintained their rankings, with the number one position in Vietnam still belonging to the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (in the 501-600 group). Following that, Duy Tan University and Ton Duc Thang University continued to hold positions 601-800 together, while Hanoi Medical University was the last institution in the top 1,000 best universities in the world, ranking 801-1,000.

The remaining familiar names are Ho Chi Minh City Open University and the following universities: Hanoi National University, Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Hue University, and Ho Chi Minh City National University, all maintaining their previous positions. The detailed rankings of Vietnamese universities among 2,191 universities in 115 countries and territories are as follows:

School name	Rankings in 2026	Rankings in 2025
University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City	501-600	501-600
Duy Tan University	601-800	601-800
Ton Duc Thang University	601-800	601-800
Hanoi Medical University	801-1,000	801-1,000
Nguyen Tat Thanh University	1,001-1,200	Unrated
Ho Chi Minh City Open University	1,201-1,500	1,201-1,500
Hanoi National University	1,201-1,500	1,201-1,500
Hanoi University of Science and Technology	1,501+	1,501+
University of Da Nang	1,501+	Unrated
Hue University	1,501+	1,501+
Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City	1,501+	1,501+

On a scale of 100, Hanoi Medical University leads Vietnam in teaching with 32 points, while Ho Chi Minh City University of Economics, Duy Tan University, and Ton Duc Thang University excel in research quality with 92.1 - 91.9 - 85.9 points, significantly higher than Hanoi University of Technology (30.5) and Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City (31.6). Conversely, in terms of research environment, the scores of the ranked universities do not differ much, ranging from 9.4 to 21.8 points.

In terms of international prospects, Ton Duc Thang University ranks first (63) and the lowest is Ho Chi Minh City National University (33.1). Ton Duc Thang is also the only university with a percentage of international students up to 2%, according to THE. Meanwhile, the names considered to have the best "mastery" of technology transfer in Vietnam are Hanoi University of Technology, Ho Chi Minh City University of Economics, and Hanoi Medical University with scores ranging from 66.1-44.8.

In 2020, Vietnam had its first universities in the THE's top 10 best universities in the world, with three universities: Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Vietnam National University Hanoi, and Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City, all ranked in the 801-1000 group or higher. Since then, more universities have joined the list, with the highest rankings ever recorded belonging to Duy Tan University and Ton Duc Thang University, in the 401-500 group in 2022 and 2023.

What is the ranking method?

The THE's methodology for ranking world universities this year remains the same as last year, with 18 ranking criteria divided into five groups: research environment, technology transfer, research quality, teaching, and international outlook. Each criterion accounts for 2-15% of the weight in the final ranking result, except for the "study abroad" criterion, which is included but not yet weighted.

Weighting of criteria in THE's ranking of the world's best universities.

PHOTO: SCREENSHOT

Of these, the three criteria with the highest weighting are research quality (30%), teaching (29.5%), and research environment (29%). The data for ranking the world's best universities is based on statistical analysis of scientific citations, research publications, survey responses from academics, and many other publicly available sources, THE added.

This year, the top 10 best universities in the world are still dominated by universities from the US and the UK, with Oxford University (UK) continuing to lead for the 10th year. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Princeton University (US) retain their 2nd and 3rd rankings, while Cambridge University (UK) rose two places to share 3rd position. Harvard University (US) dropped one place to 5th, tied with Stanford University (US), which moved up one place compared to last year.

THE is one of the most prestigious, experienced, and influential university ranking organizations in the world, alongside QS (UK) and Shanghai Ranking Consultancy (China). THE has been ranking universities since 2004, alongside QS, a year after the world first had a global university ranking published by Shanghai Jiao Tong University (later Shanghai Ranking Consultancy).

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/lan-dau-tien-viet-nam-co-11-truong-vao-bang-xep-hang-dh-tot-nhat-the-gioi-185251009092219825.htm