Inside Vietnam's largest futuristic university mega-campus

Over 13 years of development, Vietnam National University - Hanoi has transformed its campus into a modern educational hub serving 17,000 students with upgraded facilities.

The campus has taken shape as a modern, green and smart university town, integrating spaces for education, research, living, physical training and student activities.

The master plan for the university town received the Prime Ministerial approval in 2013, outlining more than 20 sub-projects designed to accommodate 65,000 students.

Spanning roughly 1,113 hectares with a projected total cost exceeding VND25 trillion (US$965 million), the site ranks as the largest university development in Vietnam. It serves as the intellectual core of the Hoa Lac Satellite City, a mega-project designed to transform western Hanoi into a leading hub for science, technology, and education.

The campus has materialized into a modern, green, and smart academic township, integrating facilities for higher education, scientific research, residential life, sports training, and extracurricular activities.

Inside a lecture hall building at the University of Engineering and Technology (UET).

This year, the university relocated its headquarters from downtown Hanoi to the VNU campus, roughly 30 kilometers away.

Over 4,000 first-year students will complete their degree programs entirely at the new location, as the institution prepares to transition all undergraduate and postgraduate cohorts to the suburban campus by 2029.

Prof. Dr. Chu Duc Trinh, president of the UET, stated that the institution transported roughly 6,000 pieces of laboratory and practical training equipment to Hoa Lac prior to welcoming new students.

All remaining laboratories currently situated in downtown Hanoi are slated for relocation to the site by the next academic year.

Third-year computer engineering students Doan Duy Thanh (L) and Ngo Thi Cam Chi work on experiments inside the Electronics Practice Lab at the new Hoa Lac campus. The university relocated roughly 6,000 pieces of training equipment to the facility ahead of the academic term.

Mai Hoang Tung, a graduate student in electronic engineering, programs a robotic arm designed for industrial applications. "The new practice and laboratory facilities are modern and spacious, providing more inspiration for learning and research," he said.

UET’s agricultural technology experimental area.

A dormitory at the campus, which currently accommodates around 5,000 students.

Luu Phuong Nam, a first-year student at the University of Law from Phu Tho Province, is satisfied with his dorm room, which comes equipped with air conditioning and an en-suite bathroom.

"I share a room with three other students. It costs VND800,000 ($30) per person per month, which is very reasonable compared with the rental rooms outside that my family looked at," Nam said.

The National Defense and Security Education Center in the university town hosted more than 4,000 first-year UET students for study and training on Sept. 4. Photo by VNU

The university town also has football, volleyball, basketball and badminton courts, a multipurpose sports hall and a golf practice area, allowing students to take part in a range of sports. Photo by VNU

Tree-lined roads run through the university town. The transport system has been developed with buses connecting the campus to central Hanoi, as well as electric buses and electric bicycles operating within the campus.

A project approved on Aug. 8 sets a goal for VNU to become a research- and innovation-oriented elite university by 2030 as part of a national higher education stratification plan.

One of the targets is to complete the technical infrastructure and move 60,000 students to the university town between now and 2030.