The Emergence of Private Higher Education in Vietnam: Challenges and Opportunities *

Abstract

In 1986, the government of Vietnam introduced a policy termed “doi moi,” resulting in profound changes to shift the country from being a centrally planned economy to a market economy. With dramatic changes in Vietnam's economic structure resulting from doi moi, it was also essential to carry out reforms in education. One such reform was to allow for privatization to occur in education at all levels. The focus of this paper is the emergence of private higher education in Vietnam in the period following the introduction of doi moi with a special emphasis on the most recent developments in private higher education.