However, in the context of artificial intelligence (AI), big data, robotics, semiconductors, and global technological competition changing the structure of the world economy , this approach has become too narrow for the development requirements of the nation in the 21st century.
In the age of AI, the greatest resources are knowledge, data, core technologies, and the learning capacity of the entire population. A strong nation in the future must be able to absorb knowledge the fastest, create new knowledge the fastest, and transform knowledge into the strongest social value.
Therefore, Vietnam needs a completely new university philosophy. Universities cannot continue to operate as "independent schools" focused solely on degree training. Universities must become a national knowledge ecosystem, interconnected from cutting-edge research to practical applications and the dissemination of knowledge to the entire population.
From that perspective, the "Three tiers of universities and two loops" model could become the national development architecture in the future.
The first tier is the elite university. This is the most strategic tier because it acts as the national brain in the era of AI and science and technology. The core objective of this tier is to create core knowledge and technologies with Vietnamese intellectual property rights. Without strong research centers and elite universities capable of connecting with global knowledge, Vietnam will forever remain a place that uses other people's technology instead of mastering its own. Elite universities need to operate with strong autonomy, large research funds, an international research environment, and the ability to attract global talent.
The second tier is where knowledge is transformed into practical value for the economy and society. This is the tier of traditional universities. The role of this tier is particularly important because it receives knowledge from the elite and applies it to real life. This tier connects science with the market, research with businesses, and technology with daily life. If the second tier is weak, the nation will lack the workforce to transform knowledge into economic power. In that case, research will remain on paper, and technology will struggle to be put into practice.
The third level is the university for all citizens. This is the broadest level, closest to society, and where the entire value of the national knowledge system is put into practice. All knowledge, technology, and tools from the two upper levels must ultimately descend to this level to create real value in life and the economy.
This is where farmers use AI to optimize production, workers use technology to increase productivity, small businesses apply data to their operations, and people learn lifelong through personal AI agents.
If the first level is where global knowledge is absorbed, and the second level is where knowledge is transformed into technology and solutions, then the third level is where all the value is deployed within society.
However, the true power of this model lies not in the three individual layers, but in the two continuous knowledge loops between the layers.
The first loop is the flow of knowledge from elite universities down to traditional universities and then spreading to the entire population. This is the loop that transforms knowledge into social productivity. When this loop operates quickly, technology will spread faster, and innovation will be stronger.
Conversely, the second loop goes from social practice back to the research system. As a result, universities are no longer detached from reality and science is no longer confined to paper.
These two loops form a "national knowledge cycle." The greater the speed and intensity of these two loops, the faster knowledge spreads, the stronger domestic technology becomes, the higher national productivity, and the greater Vietnam's opportunity to break through in the AI era.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/mo-hinh-dai-hoc-cho-tuong-lai-185260520193256905.htm
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