Universities are giving first-year students a month-long Lunar New Year holiday, leaving them confused.

(Dan Tri Newspaper) - A number of universities are giving students a month-long Lunar New Year holiday in 2026, causing many students to worry about losing study time and having difficulty regaining their motivation to study after the holiday.

To date, approximately 60 universities nationwide have announced their Lunar New Year holiday schedules for 2026. While the majority of universities are giving students a 14-day break, many others are extending the holiday to a whole month.

People taking photos in traditional Vietnamese ao dai for the 2025 Lunar New Year in Ho Chi Minh City (Photo: Hai Long).

Currently, students at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Economics and Finance will have the longest Tet holiday break, a full month, from February 1st, 2026 to March 1st, 2026 (corresponding to December 14th to January 13th in the lunar calendar).

Students at Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry and Trade will have a 4-week Lunar New Year holiday in 2026, from February 9th to March 8th (corresponding to December 22nd, 2025 to January 21st, 2026 in the lunar calendar). Since the day before the official holiday falls on a Saturday and Sunday, the students' Lunar New Year holiday will be a full 30 days.

According to the issued training plan, Ho Chi Minh City University of Agriculture and Forestry plans to give students a Tet holiday break from February 2nd, 2026 to March 1st, 2026, equivalent to nearly 4 weeks.

At Gia Dinh University, students of the K19 cohort will have a 4-week Tet holiday break from February 2nd, 2026 to March 1st, 2026. Students of the K17 and K18 cohorts will have a 3-week break from February 9th, 2026 to March 1st, 2026.

Ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday at some universities, many are wondering if students will lose study time during the extended holiday? On online forums, some students are asking, "We've paid our tuition in full, but will we be missing any classes?"

One freshman even joked, "I just started school in November, and before I even had a chance to get used to the classes and the school, we're already preparing for Tet (Lunar New Year)."

Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Tam, a first-year student at a university in Ho Chi Minh City, said this was the first time she had experienced a month-long Tet holiday break. Tam wondered if such a long Tet holiday would cause students to lose valuable study time.

Furthermore, this female student also believes that a long Tet holiday break can make it difficult for students to get back into the swing of things after the holiday. In high school, students sometimes only had a week-long Tet holiday break, and even then, it wasn't easy for them to regain their motivation to study when they returned to school.

Regarding the four-week break for students, Mr. Pham Thai Son, Director of Admissions at Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry and Trade, said that the university scheduled the Tet holiday as above to help students, staff, lecturers, employees, and workers have time to rest and regenerate their energy for work.

In addition, the extended Tet holiday helps people avoid the peak days leading up to Tet, when travel costs are high and traffic is congested, especially for those who live far from home.

Regarding the scheduling of classes, the school shortened the summer vacation and increased the Lunar New Year holiday, so even with a longer holiday, the academic plan and curriculum for the year are still ensured.

According to the leader of a university in Ho Chi Minh City, the Tet holiday schedule for most schools is planned well in advance of the academic year, rather than students taking days off whenever they feel like it. Schools proactively arrange their academic year timetables to ensure the required number of weeks of actual study.

Many schools arrange to complete core teaching content, important exam schedules, or finish course modules before giving students a Tet holiday break.

Furthermore, according to regulations from the Ministry of Education and Training , universities are allowed to organize online teaching for a maximum of 30% of the total curriculum. Many universities utilize online teaching time during the Tet holiday to proactively arrange their holiday schedules.

Schools' Tet holiday schedules are arranged according to the academic year plan (Photo: Hoai Nam)

For example, at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Economics, this year the regulations stipulate that students are only allowed a 2-week Tet holiday, but in reality, students can arrange to extend their break to 4 weeks.

According to the university's announcement, students will have a Tet holiday break from February 9th, 2026 to February 22nd, 2026 (2 weeks). However, the university will organize online classes one week before and one week after the holiday, allowing students to return home for Tet celebrations lasting almost a month.

Every year, many schools organize online classes for the week before and after Tet (Lunar New Year) to ensure the curriculum is maintained, allow students to stay home for the extended Tet holiday, and avoid traveling during peak Tet season.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/truong-dai-hoc-cho-nghi-tet-ca-thang-sinh-vien-nam-nhat-hoang-mang-20251213083551656.htm