Professional development plays an important part in enhancing knowledge, skills and expertise for teachers, institutional leaders and educators. While studies on professional development for teachers and school principals have been abundant, little information regarding professional development at the government level has been recorded. This study aims to investigate professional development for policy-makers in higher education quality assurance in Vietnam. A qualitative approach with focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews was employed. Data collection was conducted with officials working at the government department responsible for policy-making in quality assurance, staff members of accrediting agencies and institutional leaders, quality assurance staff members and lecturers of higher education institutions. Results show that policy-makers in Vietnamese higher education quality assurance are using traditional professional development strategies including workshops, short courses, study visits, postgraduate programs and learning by doing. It is suggested that alternative professional development approaches should be implemented in the Vietnamese national quality assurance organisation.