Editing Hanoi (section)

== Education ==
[[File:Indochina Medical College.jpg|thumb|The [[Hanoi Medical University]] was the first modern university in Vietnam, established in 1902 during French colonial rule.|215x215px]]

Hanoi, as the capital of French Indochina, was home to the first Western-style universities in Indochina, including ''Indochina Medical College'' (1902) – now [[Hanoi Medical University|Hanoi Medical University - HMU]], ''Indochina University'' (1904) – now [[Vietnam National University, Hanoi|Vietnam National University - VNU (Hanoi)]] (the largest), and ''École Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de l'Indochina'' (1925) – now [[Vietnam University of Fine Arts|Vietnam University of Fine Art - VNUFA (Hanoi)]].

After the Communist Party of Vietnam took control of Hanoi in 1954, many new universities were built, most prominently the [[Hanoi University of Science and Technology]]. Recently ULIS ([[University of Languages and International Studies]]) was rated as one of the top universities in south-east Asia for languages and language studies at the undergraduate level.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.topuniversities.com/universities/vietnam-national-university-hanoi/undergrad |title=Vietnam National University, Hanoi |publisher=Top Universities |date=8 December 2012 |access-date=24 November 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131015184420/http://www.topuniversities.com/universities/vietnam-national-university-hanoi/undergrad |archive-date=15 October 2013 }}</ref> Other universities that are not part of [[Vietnam National University, Hanoi|Vietnam National University]] or Hanoi University include Hanoi School for Public Health, Hanoi School of Agriculture, [[Electric Power University]] and [[University of Transport and Communications]]. It is estimated that 62% of the scientists in Vietnam are living and working in Hanoi.<ref>{{cite web
 |url=http://www.hanoi.gov.vn/hanoiwebs/en/hanoi_capital/group1/index.htm
 |publisher=Hanoi City People's Committee
 |title=Hanoi – The capital of Vietnam: Preface
 |url-status=dead
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927183943/https://www.hanoi.gov.vn/hanoiwebs/en/hanoi_capital/group1/index.htm
 |archive-date=27 September 2007 }}</ref> Admission to undergraduate study is through entrance examinations, which are conducted annually and open to everyone who has successfully completed their secondary education in the country. The majority of universities in Hanoi are public, although in recent years a number of private universities have begun operation. Thăng Long University, founded in 1988 by Vietnamese mathematics professors in Hanoi and France,<ref>{{cite web |work=Viet Nam News |title=Growing university reflects VN's progress |date=2006-01-29 |url=http://vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn/showarticle.php?num=01INN290106 |access-date=18 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091214105524/https://vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn/showarticle.php?num=01INN290106 |archive-date=14 December 2009 }}</ref> was the first private university in Vietnam. Because many of Vietnam's major universities are located in Hanoi, students from other provinces (especially in the northern part of the country) wishing to enter university often travel to Hanoi for the annual entrance examination. Such events usually take place in June and July, during which a large number of students and their families converge on the city for several weeks around the intense examination periods. In recent years, these entrance exams have been coordinated by the Ministry of Education, but entrance requirements are decided independently by each university.
[[File:Hanoi University of Science and Technology - DSC04501.JPG|thumb|215x215px|The [[Hanoi University of Science and Technology]], one of the most prestigious in Vietnam.]]
Although there are state owned [[kindergarten]]s, there are also many private ventures that serve both local and international needs. [[Pre-tertiary-education|Pre-tertiary]] (elementary and secondary) schools in Hanoi are generally state run, but there are also some independent schools. Education is equivalent to the K–12 system in the U.S., with elementary school between grades 1 and 5, middle school (or junior high) between grades 6 and 9, and [[High school (upper secondary)|high school]] from grades 10 to 12. There are several specialised schools (also known as high schools for the gifted) in Hanoi where students with the most academic prowess attend.

Education levels are much higher within the city of Hanoi in comparison to the suburban areas outside the city. About 33.8% of the labor force in the city has completed secondary school in contrast to 19.4% in the suburbs.<ref name="FORBES 2001 68–84" /> 21% of the labor force in the city has completed tertiary education in contrast to 4.1% in the suburbs.<ref name="FORBES 2001 68–84" />

=== Reform ===
Country-wide educational change is difficult in Vietnam due to the restrictive control of the government on social and economic development strategies.<ref name="Duggan 2001 193–212">{{Cite journal|last=Duggan|first=Stephen|date=2001|title=Educational Reform in Viet Nam: A Process of Change or Continuity? |jstor=3099657 |journal=Comparative Education |volume=37 |issue=2 |pages=193–212 |doi=10.1080/03050060120043411 |s2cid=143980922}}</ref> According to Hanoi government publications, the national system of education was reformed in 1950, 1956 and 1970.<ref name="Duggan 2001 193–212" /> It was not until 1975 when the two separate education systems of the former North and South Vietnam territories became unified under a single national system.<ref name="Duggan 2001 193–212" /> In Hanoi in December 1996, the [[Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam]] stated that: "To carry out industrialization and modernization successfully, it is necessary to develop education and training strongly [and to] maximize human resources, the key factor of fast and sustained development."<ref name="Duggan 2001 193–212" />