Vietnam National University-Ho Chi Minh City placed in the 701-750 band while its sister in Hanoi entered the 801-1000 band of the 2020 rankings, compiled by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), a British firm specializing in overseas education.

Last year, both schools reached the 801-1000 band.

The list analyzes academic reputation, employer reputation, faculty/student ratio, citations per faculty, international faculty ratio and international student ratio to rate 1,010 universities from 85 countries and territories around the world.

According to QS, Vietnam National University-HCMC hosts up to 61,905 students and 3,985 faculty staff. Its research output is assessed at ‘medium level.’

The Hanoi school is home to around 35,000 students and 2,600 academic staff, with its research output at 'high level’.

Vietnam National University-Hanoi ranked 147th while the HCMC school stood at 143rd in Asia.

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

Outstanding achievements on the international stage by Vietnamese students have helped lift the profile of domestic tertiary education, observers say.

Last September, the Vietnamese national universities were two of the first three Vietnamese institutions to enter Times Higher Education World University Rankings, a British provider of higher education data.

A month later, both became the first ever in Vietnam to be listed in Best Global Universities Rankings by U.S. News & World Report based on academic research and reputation.