The university currently offers Bachelor's and Master's programs, covering the fields of engineering, natural sciences, and commerce.

The Vietnamese–German University is founded on the cooperation between the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the German Federal State of Hesse.

Six months later, on September 10, 2008, VGU was opened officially by the then Hessen State Premier, Roland Koch, the Vietnamese then-Minister of Education and Training cum Deputy Prime Minister, Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thien Nhan, and Prof. Dr. Wolf Rieck, President of VGU.

Starting in September 2008, 35 students enrolled for VGU's first study program, “Electrical Engineering and Information Technology”, run by the University of Applied Sciences, Frankfurt am Main.

A new Master's program will take place in close collaboration with VGU's newly founded “Vietnamese–German Transport Research Centre” (VGTRC).

Another important milestone for VGU's development is a World Bank loan of US$180 million, which was confirmed in June 2010.

The loan is mainly provided for the construction of a new campus in Bình Dương Province, adjacent to Ho Chi Minh City, which will be opened in 2016/17.

VGU's “Research Centre for High-Tech Engineering and Sustainability” is to be constructed on the new campus in Binh Duong Province, adjacent to Ho Chi Minh City.

Considering the further modernization of Vietnam, there is a growing need for a better higher education to push up the country's economic development.

Also the university's autonomous status is part of Germany's higher education system: regarding VGU, the institutional and academic freedom is guaranteed in its foundation documents.

It is VGU's goal to ensure a “Gradual Handover”: most administrative and academic positions are to be handed over to Vietnamese employees, thus the number of German staff will be reduced.

The Academic Senate and an advisory board, consisting of twelve members, complete VGU's organizational structure.

The VGU-Consortium coordinates the cooperation with German partner universities and is in charge of academic as well as administrative issues.

Approved in June 2010, the loan is mainly used for the construction of the new campus in Binh Duong Province, a blooming town adjacent to Ho Chi Minh City.

After having established the necessary academic structures, VGU will offer study programmes which are independent from German partner universities.

VGU's programs of study are focused on real-world experiences and industry to improve the student's opportunities on the job market.

The close link to Germany is enforced by exchange semesters to German universities which are offered in some of the programs of study.

VGU, considering itself as a gateway to Germany, also offers the possibility of undertaking an internship in German companies.

Staying in Ho Chi Minh City for a couple of weeks, they offer single modules in blocked seminars, supported by Vietnamese lecturers.

VGU's Bachelor students are to participate in a mandatory “Foundation Year”: it is designed to bridge the gap between Vietnamese and German secondary education.

Doctoral students will be exempted from the tuition fee and have the opportunity to join a variety of projects with his/her supervisors and colleagues at VGU as a member and/or principal investigators.

Due to generous support by Vietnamese and German institutions, the tuition fees at VGU are quite moderate.

It is a bigger, more modern and more equipped new campus with state-of-the-art facilities with engineering labs, sports complex, events hall, etc.

The World Bank loan of USD 180 million, which was approved in June 2010, is mainly for the construction of this new campus.