On the afternoon of August 1, 2022 in Hanoi, the Vietnam National University Hanoi, in collaboration with Indiana University, the United States, led the official launch ceremony of The USAID Partnership for Higher Education Reform project.

This project is funded by the United States Government through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and awarded to Indiana University. The project was announced by the U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris in August 2021. The estimated budget of the project is $14.2 million.

Indiana University will collaborate with the three largest universities in Vietnam: Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam National University Hanoi, and the University of Da Nang, to enhance the academic quality and strengthen governance capacity at these universities, helping them become good examples of modern higher education in Vietnam. The project aims to drive socio-economic development by providing benefits to over 200,000 students, equipping them with the necessary knowledge and skills in the increasingly competitive global market.

The project will support partner universities in achieving three objectives: enhancing financial sustainability and autonomy, improving academic quality, and advancing research and innovation capabilities. Key activities of the project will bolster governance capacity and financial systems at the universities, provide faculty with training in instructional design, promote research collaboration, enhance research capabilities, and establish guidance and mechanisms to encourage linkages between universities and the private sector.

The project is the outcome of extensive consultations between USAID, the three largest universities in Vietnam, with the Ministry of Education and Training, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Planning and Investment, Ministry of Science and Technology, Indiana University, and the World Bank. Industry partners involved in the project implementation include Purdue University, Amazon Web Services, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and many others. This project contributes to advancing the higher education reforms outlined in the amended 2018 Law on Higher Education.