Amidst ideological backlash and public scrutiny over the concept of “liberal education,” one of Việt Nam’s premier private universities is quietly erasing the phrase.
The Latest: VinUniversity, or VinUni, recently renamed its Institute of Liberal Arts and Sciences, formerly the College of Arts and Sciences, to the Institute of Social Sciences and Natural Sciences.
- VinUni’s information channels now display the new name.
- Some older posts on its website from February and April 2026 have also been updated to reflect this change, while many posts that mentioned the Institute of Liberal Arts and Sciences are no longer accessible.
The Details: It remains unclear when and why VinUni renamed the institute.
- The university has not issued a press release or launched any communications campaign about the change.
- Luật Khoa emailed VinUni on the afternoon of July 10 seeking more information but has not received a response.
In addition, VinUni has not stated a position on the use of the phrase “liberal education” or responded to the denunciation campaign surrounding it.
- Notably, VinUni has also remained silent on the arrest and prosecution of Nguyễn Thành Nam, a Hồ Chí Minh Thought lecturer at the university; he faces charges of anti-state propaganda under Article 117 of the Penal Code over allegations that he “insulted President Hồ.”
About VinUni: VinUni is a nonprofit private university in Hà Nội, established by Phạm Nhật Vượng’s Vingroup in December 2019.
- The university says it follows international standards, with a focus on research, innovation, and student leadership development.
- The Institute of Social Sciences and Natural Sciences is one of VinUni’s four main units, alongside the College of Business and Management, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, and the College of Health Sciences.
- The institute was created to “comprehensively develop seven core qualities for student success,” which include critical thinking, leadership, and a global mindset.
The Background: In recent weeks, social media has seen a wave of denunciations over the use of the phrase “liberal education.”
- Several state media outlets and official agency pages—including those of the Ministry of Education and Training, the Center for Vietnam Studies at Fulbright University Vietnam, the Government News portal, and Tiền Phong—published posts using the phrase “liberal education,” only to quickly remove it later.
This mirrors recent scrutiny faced by Fulbright University Vietnam, a private university that follows a “liberal education” philosophy.
- Fulbright has repeatedly been attacked as a center for “nurturing dissent” and labeled a potential center for a “color revolution.”
Lê Sáng wrote this article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on July 10, 2026. The Vietnamese Magazine has the copyrights to the English translation.
