Laos Education
As a developing country in Southeast Asia ruled by a communist government, Laos has a very limited education system. The country is populated by several ethnic groups but only the Lao Loum, or “lowland Lao,” have a tradition of formal education and written script. Although education in Laos is still not very good, it is clear that the government of the Lao PDR has prioritized improving education as a means of modernizing the country and securing the future of its people. It understands that education is an important tool for national development and has invested heavily in expanding it to achieve this end.
The school system in Laos is five years for elementary school and three years each for junior and senior high school. There are few universities, and the Lao National University in Vientiane, formerly known as Vientiane Normal College, merged with 10 other institutions of higher learning in November 1996 to establish the National University, with eight colleges. Later, the branches of the National University in the southern province of Champasak and the northern province of Luang Prabang in Laos have become independent and been officially named Champasak University and Suphanuvong University. China and Laos started to send international students and advanced students to each other in 1990, and in 2009, Laos and China jointly approved the establishment of Suzhou University in Laos. Laos is one of the countries with the largest number of foreign scholarship recipients from China. Up to now, more than 4,000 Lao students have received Chinese government scholarships in China, and Laos is one of the ASEAN countries that have received the largest number of Chinese government scholarships.
| University | Address | Contact Information |
| National University of Laos | Dongdok Village, Xaythany District, Vientiane, Lao PDR | Tel: +856 21 770381, 770070 Fax: +856 21 770381 Email: nuol@nuol.edu.la |
| Champasak University | Salakeow Dongchong Road, Chatsanh Village, Pakse City, Champasak Province, Lao PDR | Telephone: +856 31 260 158 |
| Souphanouvong University | National Road 13th, Ban Done Mai, Luang Prabang, Lao PDR | Telephone: +856 71 254931-2 |
