Vietnam National Universities (VNU) in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have been recently classified among the top 1,000 universities worldwide in 2020 QS World University Rankings by UK educational organization Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), local media reported.

This is the third time in a row VNU-Hanoi entered QS World University Rankings of 1000, being placed in the 801-1000 band while its sister in HCMC entered the 701-750 band.

Vietnam National University in Hanoi listed in QS world university rankings

This year, the academic reputation criteria of VNU-Hanoi has increased significantly and gained the highest score.

QS Education Organization’s rankings feature 1,002 of the world’s most prestigious universities in 93 countries and territories, based on a methodology that assesses each institution on six metrics, including its reputation among academics and employers, faculty/student ratio, citations per faculty, international faculty ratio and international student ratio.

There were 47 new entrants in this year’s top 1,000, while more than 5,500 universities were evaluated and considered for inclusion.

QS is a British firm specializing in overseas education. The organization's ranking criteria emphasize contributions and impacts of higher education institutions to society and scientific researches.

According to QS, VNU-Hanoi provides training to up to 35,000 students and 2,600 teaching staff. Its research output is assessed at ‘high level.’

The HCMC peer trains around 61,905 students and employs 3,985 academic staff, with its research output at 'medium level’.

In QS University World Ranking 2020, Massachusetts Institute of Technology topped the list, followed by Stanford and Harvard in the US.

Outstanding achievements on the international stage by Vietnamese students have helped lift up the profile of domestic tertiary education, observers say, adding that tertiary education in Vietnam has achieved greater fame on the global academic map.