Marketization of higher education in Vietnam in the era of neoliberal globalization: policy and practice

Using a qualitative research approach, this study investigates how a neoliberal policy agenda and the global trend of marketization in higher education have influenced higher education policies in Vietnam. The major part of this study analyzes national policy documents and related literature to identify policy determinants and policy trends at the national level. The secondary part provides a critically reflective analysis of institutional responses to national policies. This study finds that globalization and pressure by global trends in favour of the market place are external determinants while social demand for higher education as well as the Government’s budget rationalization agenda are internal determinants for Vietnam to adopt marketization policies in higher education. The institutional responses to the marketization included privatization, massification, and the corporatization of university management through competitive student recruitment and adoption of corporate culture.