Vietnam's National Economics University Plans English as Its Second Language by 2030

A new language standard for a university in Hanoi

National Economics University (NEU) in Hanoi plans to make English its second language by 2030, raising graduation requirements and extending its use from classrooms to administrative documents and everyday campus life. The initiative is described as the first of its kind among Vietnamese universities.

By 2030, all graduates will be required to reach at least B2 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), with the university identifying IELTS 6.0 as the corresponding standard. Students in programs taught in Vietnamese currently face an English requirement of IELTS 5.5.

A separate deadline comes sooner: NEU plans to teach at least 30% of all courses in English by 2028. English instruction is currently concentrated mainly in advanced programs and programs run jointly with international partners.

The changes connect a practical question for students, how much English they need to graduate, with a larger question for Vietnam: how to prepare workers, researchers and policymakers for an economy closely tied to international trade and investment.

NEU's approach is to build a bilingual university, retaining Vietnamese while making English a more regular part of study, work and communication. Students would encounter the language in academic events, student spaces and university paperwork, as well as in lessons.

For a student entering a program taught in Vietnamese, the change means that English preparation will become more demanding even without enrolling in a program taught primarily in English. For lecturers, it means a growing need to explain their subjects and discuss academic work in another language.

What will change in courses and campus life?

NEU plans to expand the number of programs taught in English to 35 within five years. Its current provision covers more than a third of its 25 programs. Within the programs concerned, the proportion of content taught in English is set to rise from 50% to 65%.

The increase from 50% to 65% amounts to 15 percentage points. For students, it would mean a larger share of their subject learning takes place in English, alongside the separate requirement to demonstrate a higher level of language proficiency before graduation.

University administration will also become bilingual through documents issued in Vietnamese and English. NEU plans to establish English zones in student spaces, host academic events in English and designate hours when faculty and students are encouraged to communicate in the language.

Those measures extend the policy beyond examinations. A student might use English to follow a lecture, attend an academic event, read a university document or speak with classmates during designated hours. The aim is to make regular practice part of university life.

English instruction and English proficiency serve related purposes. Instruction concerns the language used to teach a subject, such as economics or finance. Proficiency concerns how well a person can understand and communicate in that language. NEU plans to change both.

How the transition developed

NEU began accepting international English certificates for admissions in 2017. By 2020, it had also started considering SAT and ACT scores. These steps brought international credentials into the university's admissions process before the planned expansion of English across campus.

The number of applicants presenting such credentials rose from just 50 in 2017 to 25,000 in 2024. That is a 500-fold increase, showing how rapidly the pool of applicants with these qualifications has grown.

The milestones span admissions, classroom instruction and graduation standards:

• 2017: NEU began accepting international English certificates for admission, with 50 applicants presenting such credentials.
• 2020: The university began considering SAT and ACT scores.
• 2024: The number of applicants with the relevant credentials reached 25,000.
• Within five years: NEU plans to expand the number of programs taught in English to 35.
• 2028: At least 30% of all courses are scheduled to be taught in English.
• 2030: English is to become the university's second language, with all graduates required to reach at least B2, identified in the plan as IELTS 6.0.

These dates give the transition several stages. Admissions changes have already widened the role of international qualifications, while the next targets concern what happens during a degree and what students must achieve before leaving.

Why international trade matters to the decision

Vietnam's close economic relationship with global markets provides the setting for NEU's policy. Trade with the United States is described as accounting for about one-third of Vietnam's gross domestic product (GDP), a measure of the value of goods and services produced in the country.

Professor Dr. Nguyen Thanh Hieu, NEU's vice president, outlined the importance of the American market at a recent policy dialogue seminar. He gave figures for both exports and the trade surplus, the amount by which exports to a partner exceed imports from it.

Exports from Vietnam to the United States currently account for 30 percent of the country's total export turnover, while the trade surplus with the US represents over 20 percent of Vietnam's GDP.

The figures describe different parts of the relationship: the 30% concerns America's share of Vietnam's exports, while the figure above 20% compares the trade surplus with the size of Vietnam's economy. Together, they show why commercial links with the United States receive close attention in economic policy discussions.

English proficiency is part of NEU's response to that international exposure. Graduates who can work in English are better placed to access global knowledge, communicate with investors and take part in discussions involving partners from other countries.

The university's ambition also reaches beyond one export market. Its wider purpose is to prepare graduates to negotiate, collaborate and develop new ideas in an economy connected to international businesses, institutions and research.

Trade tensions add pressure for economic reform

Global trade tensions and changing US tariff policies have tested Vietnam's economic resilience. Tariffs are taxes charged on imported goods, so changes in those charges can affect businesses that depend on selling products abroad.

Policy discussions at NEU and elsewhere have called for economic restructuring, more varied export markets and stronger regional and global cooperation. Those priorities place a premium on professionals who can maintain international relationships while businesses adjust to external shocks.

Associate Professor Dr. Phan Huu Nghi of NEU described the response he believes Vietnam should pursue when dealing with retaliatory tariffs:

To mitigate the adverse effects of retaliatory tariffs, Vietnam's approach should focus on minimizing disruptions to export-oriented businesses, maintaining domestic market stability and supply chains, preserving investor confidence and international partnerships, and turning crisis into a catalyst for reform and competitiveness enhancement.

His proposal covers immediate business needs and longer economic changes. Keeping supply chains working means maintaining the links through which materials, components and finished goods move. Preserving investor confidence means giving businesses reasons to continue committing money and maintaining partnerships.

English skills can support the communication involved in those tasks. NEU's language initiative sits alongside the broader effort to prepare graduates for international commercial and policy work.

What other universities offer as comparisons

Sciences Po in France and Kyiv National Economic University (KNEU) in Ukraine provide examples of institutions using English instruction to attract international students and prepare graduates for careers across borders.

Sciences Po offers a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs taught entirely in English and attracts students from more than 150 countries. Its approach combines English instruction with intensive language support and dual degree programs involving leading global partners.

That combination links the language of teaching with student support and international academic cooperation. Sciences Po's model has helped it attract international talent and become a centre for global policy dialogue.

KNEU offers programs taught in English across faculties that include International Economics and Management, Finance, and Law. It also supports academic mobility, research collaboration and international partnerships.

Academic mobility means opportunities for students or staff to study, teach or carry out research at another institution. For NEU, these comparisons illustrate how greater use of English can connect classroom learning with wider academic and professional opportunities.

The similarities concern direction: more teaching in English, more international connections and preparation for global careers. NEU's own plan places particular weight on making two languages part of everyday university life.

India's experience brings language and inclusion into view

India's National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020) offers a different comparison. It promotes multilingualism and the use of mother tongues in early education while also recognising the importance of English for global citizenship and employment.

The Indian policy seeks to make education more inclusive and more relevant to a changing world. Its combination of local languages and international communication echoes NEU's ambition to retain Vietnamese while expanding English.

Language policy can also produce disagreement. Debates in India over Hindi and English have highlighted questions of national identity, linguistic diversity and access to education. Those concerns matter when language requirements affect who can participate comfortably in academic life.

An unnamed commentator, discussing the practical role of language in those debates, described communication as a connection between people:

Language is a social necessity because its use is the easiest way for an individual to communicate with his or her neighbour... Language, therefore, is formed as a link between individuals as a matter of practicality, and usually it is a matter of convenience and common sense.

For NEU, the comparable challenge is to expand opportunities through English while keeping the university accessible to students with different language backgrounds. Its stated direction is bilingualism, with Vietnamese continuing alongside a larger role for English.

The economic ambitions extend beyond the classroom

NEU expects stronger English skills to help graduates compete for jobs in Vietnam and abroad, attract international employers and contribute to national economic development. The university also sees the language as a route into international research and professional networks.

Figures from NAFSA illustrate the economic scale of international education in the United States. During the 2023-2024 academic year, international students at US colleges and universities contributed $43.8 billion and supported 378,175 jobs.

English language programs alone accounted for $371.3 million and supported 2,691 jobs. These figures concern the US economy, where international students spend money on education and related needs. Vietnam's setting is different, with NEU concentrating on the skills and opportunities of its graduates.

The broader economic rationale is that English proficiency can improve access to employment and international engagement, while education can also attract spending and investment. NEU's policy brings those ambitions into its plans for teaching and campus operations.

Vietnam's government has also established advisory councils whose membership includes NEU's president. These bodies provide strategic recommendations on policy planning and governance and are tasked with proposing timely responses to unexpected social and economic changes at home and abroad.

For academics and policymakers involved in that work, English can support engagement with global partners and participation in international policy discussions. The university's reform therefore connects professional preparation with its role in Vietnam's wider economic debate.

What students and lecturers will need

Students will face a higher graduation standard and more exposure to English in both formal study and campus activities. The change is intended to widen access to employment, further study and professional development in Vietnam and overseas.

Language reforms can also place uneven pressure on students. Concerns include differences between urban and rural educational opportunities, the risk of giving an advantage to those with stronger prior English instruction, and the added workload for students still developing their skills.

Lecturers may need additional training and support to teach their subjects effectively in English. At the same time, greater fluency can help them engage with international research, collaborate with colleagues abroad and contribute to the university's international activities.

NEU's gradual expansion, language support, English zones and bilingual environment are intended to help students and staff make that transition. The account of the plan gives no detailed timetable for individual student groups or the specific training and support that lecturers will receive.

The practical goal is an academic community able to operate in Vietnamese and English. Administrative processes, extracurricular activities and informal conversations are part of that vision, alongside lectures and examinations.

The next major dated target is 2028, when at least 30% of courses are to be taught in English. By 2030, the university intends to complete the move to English as its second language and apply the higher graduation requirement to all graduates.

Key Points

• National Economics University in Hanoi plans to make English its second language by 2030 while retaining Vietnamese.
• All graduates will need at least B2 proficiency, identified as IELTS 6.0, compared with the current IELTS 5.5 requirement for programs taught in Vietnamese.
• At least 30% of all courses are to be taught in English by 2028.
• NEU plans to expand programs taught in English to 35 within five years and increase their English content from 50% to 65%.
• Applicants presenting international credentials increased from 50 in 2017 to 25,000 in 2024.
• Bilingual documents, English zones, academic events and designated speaking hours will extend the policy beyond classrooms.
• The reform supports international employment, research and economic engagement, while requiring attention to student access and lecturer preparation.