The Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training has instructed 190 universities and colleges to reduce enrolment in the 2010-2011 school year because of their lack of infrastructure and human resources.
Universities will enroll 272,266 students this year, nearly 10,000 more than last year, while colleges will take in 240,600 students, a reduction of 11,000, the Tin Tuc newspaper reported Tuesday, citing the ministry. Non-public schools have seen admission quotas reduced considerably. Seventy-six non-public universities and colleges have planned to enroll a total of 134,720 students but have been allowed to admit only 104,720. The ministry said the admission quota for each university would be based on capacity, infrastructure and ratio of students per lecturer.
The space required per student in classrooms is two square meters, but few institutions, including public universities, can meet this requirement.
Only five universities – Hanoi University of Transport and Communication, University of Civil Engineering, Hanoi Architectural University, Water Resources University and Ton Duc Thang University – have been allowed to increase their enrolment.
Vietnam now has 379 universities and colleges. The country welcomes 22 million pupils and students in the 2009-2010 school year. Of them, more than 1.8 million attend universities.
