Currently, there are fairly many difficult problems in the system of education in general and higher education in Vietnam in particular. One of the fundamental reasons for these problems is that the author do not have yet found a philosophy of education, especially a philosophy of higher education which is really suitable to our time, to the conditions of the market economy, to the context of international integration and to the development trends of a knowledge-based economy. The study of educational philosophy and philosophy of higher education in the countries with the world's leading education is very important and necessary, because this is the source of useful literature and suggestive values for the renovation of education, especially higher education in the less developed countries like Vietnam. This article focuses on analyzing generally the liberal philosophy of education of Wilhelm Humboldt, who laid a crucial foundation for the model of higher education in all developed states and in many countries around the world. His liberal philosophy of higher education emphasizes ideas on research universities and principles of the model of university autonomy.