On June 18, 2025, Times Higher Education (THE) officially released the THE Impact Rankings, which assess universities worldwide on their contributions to achieving the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this edition, National Economics University (NEU) continued to make its mark by rising to the 301-400 band worldwide, maintaining its presence in the rankings for four consecutive years.

In 2025, 2,526 educational institutions from numerous countries and continents participated, an increase of 563 institutions over the previous year. Vietnam had a total of 16 higher education institutions represented, with NEU remaining among the universities with global impact.

NEU was ranked against four SDG criteria, placing in the top 20 and top 50 for two of them.

For SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

NEU also ranked 11th worldwide and was the only university in Vietnam in the top 100. The University scored 87.5 points on this indicator, far exceeding the global average of 49.1 points. This demonstrates that NEU’s working, learning, research, and teaching environment is highly rated. The University’s governance and educational activities are transparent and demonstrate strong compliance with legal requirements.

For SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

NEU ranked 49th worldwide and was one of three universities in Vietnam in the top 100. This result recognizes NEU’s contribution to providing a high-quality workforce for the economy, with the employment rate of students after graduation consistently exceeding 95.6%. Many NEU alumni have become prominent entrepreneurs, leaders, and scientists.

For SDG 4: Quality Education

In the 2025 rankings, NEU made remarkable progress on SDG 4, rising to the 201-300 band worldwide with 65.9 points, compared with the 601-800 band in 2024. This result demonstrates a substantial improvement in the University’s overall quality of education, including teaching, learning, research, and knowledge sharing with the community. Community engagement activities, such as seminars, free courses, and short-term academic programs, also help clearly demonstrate NEU’s role in making knowledge accessible and disseminating it throughout society.

For SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

For SDG 17, NEU continued to record positive progress, ranking in the 301-400 band globally with 72.5 points, far exceeding the global average of 52.7 points. This achievement clearly reflects the University’s strategy of expanding international cooperation and multidisciplinary partnerships to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. NEU has actively built a network of partnerships with international organizations, businesses, and educational institutions in Vietnam and abroad, while participating in numerous global initiatives to promote inclusive and sustainable development.

Across Southeast Asia, participation in the THE Impact Rankings continues to expand. The Philippines currently leads with 113 higher education institutions represented, followed by Thailand with 83 and Indonesia with 71. Compared with its neighbors, Vietnam has a more modest number of participating higher education institutions, at 16, but continues to demonstrate clear determination and sustained efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

The THE Impact Rankings are global rankings produced by Times Higher Education (THE) to assess higher education institutions’ contributions to realizing the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set out by the United Nations in 2016. The rankings aim to go beyond academic achievements to measure universities’ real-world impact on society through activities that promote human development, social equity, and environmental protection.

The 2025 edition attracted widespread interest from the global academic community, with 2,526 higher education institutions participating, an increase of 563 over the previous year. This shows that globalization in education is shifting strongly toward prioritizing social impact and sustainability, rather than focusing solely on research or teaching.

Article and photos: Department of Communications

This is an automated translation. If you notice any errors, please contact the Department of Communications, National Economics University at phongtruyenthong@neu.edu.vn.