At a study-abroad seminar held by Summit Education in Hanoi on Oct. 3, Nghiem Tan Cuong, a 10th-grade math major at Hanoi-Amsterdam High School for the Gifted, was looking into data analytics programs at universities in Singapore and Hong Kong.

Cuong said the U.S. was once on his list, but his family changed course mainly because tuition there keeps rising, while his parents can afford about VND300-400 million ($11,500-15,400) a year.

Tuition and fees for 2026-27 average $26,034 a year for out-of-state students at ranked public U.S. colleges and $46,973 at private ones, before living costs, according to U.S. News & World Report.

He also sees Singapore and Hong Kong as modern places to study that are close to Vietnam, which saves on travel.

Counseling desks for Asian universities stayed crowded throughout the event as students waited to ask about entry requirements, tuition and scholarships.

Tran Minh Trang, a 10th grader at Phan Huy Chu-Dong Da High School, has also set aside plans for the U.S. and Europe to aim for business and economics programs at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) and the National University of Singapore (NUS).

She described Asia as a friendly environment with good education where she can still use English.

"The application process at Asian universities is also leaner and simpler than in the U.S., based mainly on GPA and certificates," Trang said.

The shift from the U.S. to Asia is growing clearer, said Le Dieu Linh, deputy director of Summit Education, where most families used to target only American schools.

In the past one to two years, 30-40% of its students have considered Asia and applied to schools in the region alongside the U.S., she said.

HKU has seen a similar trend, with one Vietnamese applicant in 2022, three the next year and 30 in 2024, according to Vu Hai Truong, its admissions representative in Vietnam.

This year the number rose tenfold to 300 applications, of which 192 were admitted, he said.

Students attend an international study-abroad seminar in Hanoi on the afternoon of Oct. 3, 2026. Photo by VnExpress/Thanh Hang

Counselors and admissions officers point first to cost. Tuition and fees at ranked U.S. national universities have risen about 102% at private schools since 2007-08, 99% for in-state students at public schools and 89% for out-of-state students, or 18-26% after inflation, according to U.S. News & World Report data from 395 institutions.

Their second reason is tighter U.S. rules on visas and work. Guidance issued in August by the U.S. Student and Exchange Visitor Program limits curricular practical training, a work authorization widely used for internships, to programs that require the training of every student.

The H-1B work visa has moved from a random lottery to a selection weighted by four wage levels, with the highest-paid applicants entered four times and entry-level ones once.

A $100,000 fee on new H-1B petitions for workers abroad, imposed in September 2025 and extended on Sept. 18 for another year, has made employers wary of hiring foreign graduates, the counselors said, though a federal court blocked its collection in June.

Hong Kong is seen as "just Western enough," Truong said, offering parents and students the reassurance of a modern learning environment that is not too far from home.

In the QS World University Rankings 2027, NUS ranks 10th, HKU 11th and Singapore's Nanyang Technological University 12th, followed by China's Peking University at 13th and Tsinghua University at 14th, with Fudan University at 26th.

HKU charges non-local undergraduates HK$250,000-280,000 ($31,900-35,700) a year in tuition for most programs in 2027-28, according to its admissions office.

Its 2025 bachelor's graduates earned an average of HK$33,338 ($4,250) a month, a university survey shows, and non-local graduates may stay in Hong Kong for two years after finishing without first securing a job.

Another draw is "soft, simple entry requirements," said Nguyen Thuy Linh, an admissions representative of the Singapore Institute of Management.

Where U.S. schools set high demands on essays, extracurricular activities, certificates and achievements, Singapore institutions mainly require a GPA of at least 7.0 out of 10 and an IELTS score of 6.0, she said, with essays mattering only for scholarship applicants.

HKU has lowered its minimum GPA for Vietnamese applicants from 8.0 to 7.0, Truong said, as universities court students they rate highly for ability, studiousness and adaptability.

It also runs a principal-nominated scholarship program with eight Vietnamese high schools, including Hanoi-Amsterdam, Chu Van An and Nguyen Sieu in Hanoi and Le Hong Phong and Tran Dai Nghia in Ho Chi Minh City, compared with four schools in Thailand and none in Laos or Cambodia.

Le Dieu Linh advised students to research their field and career path carefully before applying instead of chasing rankings, while Nguyen Thuy Linh urged them to sharpen their spoken and written English so they can integrate confidently in an international environment.