Hanoi University of Science and Technology (USTH) was founded in 2009 under an intergovernmental agreement between Vietnam and France. Over 17 years, cooperation has covered university management, curricula, staff development and research projects.
In 2025, Vietnam’s prime minister approved a plan for the national network of higher education and teacher-training institutions for 2021–2030. USTH is one of three universities established under intergovernmental agreements between Vietnam and other countries.
USTH Vice Rector Tran Dinh Phong said the two sides jointly manage the university, develop its staff, and design education and research programmes according to French and European standards. In Vietnam, USTH is affiliated with VAST. In France, it is supported by a consortium of nearly 30 universities, engineering schools and research organisations.
The Vietnamese and French resources help connect teaching with research and develop cooperation between institutes, universities and businesses. The consortium contributes university-management experience and helps create advanced education and research programmes.
Joint management was initially difficult because of differences in academic culture. After finding a suitable coordination mechanism, the partners combined their strengths, developed USTH according to strict academic standards and retained its Vietnamese identity.
USTH focuses on fields important to Vietnam’s development and strong areas for its French partners. Its programmes train science and technology specialists, give students international exchange experience and allow international students to study in Vietnam.
USTH Consortium chair Jean-Paul Deroin said the partners had launched dual-degree programmes at bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral levels. Bachelor’s students spend two years at USTH and one year in France. Consortium scientists teach nearly 60% of the joint master’s classes, and students receive payment for six-month internships in France under French government rules.
In the joint doctoral programme, researchers are supervised by Vietnamese and French lecturers and conduct research in both countries. Nearly 50% of USTH lecturers earned doctorates in France through government programmes 322 and 911.
Joint research by VAST and partners including CNRS, IRD and CEA is strengthening USTH’s research capacity. The university currently produces 1.2–1.5 SCIE-indexed papers per lecturer and is among VAST’s leading units for international publication quality.
IRD helped create two joint master’s programmes, three international laboratories and research groups. USTH received institutional HCERES accreditation in 2023. In 2026, four more programmes received five-year HCERES accreditation, while the university received four QS Stars in its first assessment.
USTH aims to enter Vietnam’s top five universities by 2030 and Asia’s top 200 by 2035.
Sources: VnExpress
