Invalid Aptis certificates accepted

The Ministry of Education and Training proposed that Ton Duc Thang University accept Aptis certificates for graduation consideration for students and the school agreed.

In an official dispatch signed on April 26, the Ministry of Education and Training said that upon request, the British Council has committed to issuing additional certificates to candidates who took the Aptis exam and obtained an Aptis certificate from November 11 to December 22, 2022.

Aptis certificates issued during this period were previously found by the Department to be invalid, contrary to the Department's decisions.

The issued certificate has the additional line "This Aptis Candidate report has the same validity as an Aptis ESOL International Cerlificate".

At the same time, the Ministry requested Ton Duc Thang University to accept the above certificate to completely resolve the petition of students and their families.

Last night, Ton Duc Thang University issued an announcement stating that based on the Ministry's official dispatch, the school will recognize students' Aptis certificates, with the condition that they are accompanied by an equivalent certificate from the British Council.

M\u1eb7t tr\u01b0\u1edbc v\u00e0 sau c\u1ee7a ch\u1ee9ng ch\u1ec9 Aptis m\u00e0 H\u1ed9i \u0111\u1ed3ng Anh ph\u1ea3i c\u1ea5p th\u00eam cho sinh vi\u00ean. \u1ea2nh: C\u1ee5c Qu\u1ea3n l\u00fd ch\u1ea5t l\u01b0\u1ee3ng, B\u1ed9 Gi\u00e1o d\u1ee5c v\u00e0 \u0110\u00e0o t\u1ea1o.<\/em><\/p>"">

In January, more than 700 students of Ton Duc Thang University and about 100 students of the University of Electricity were in trouble because the Aptis (General) certificate issued by the British Council from November 11 to December 22, 2022 was not recognized by the school to consider foreign language output standards. Students are at risk of graduating late or having some subjects and internship credits canceled.

The reason is that during this period, the type of certificate that the British Council was licensed by the Ministry of Education and Training was called Aptis ESOL, not Aptis. However, when students complained, the British Council firmly believed that the two types of certificates had equivalent value, requiring students to work with the school themselves to get recognition.

Meanwhile, Ton Duc Thang University said there was no legal basis, removing the Aptis certificate from the list of recognized foreign language output standards.

After the school's acceptance announcement yesterday, many Ton Duc Thang University students said they breathed a sigh of relief.

"My friends and I are very happy. We only need to ask the British Council to reissue the certificate as required to be recognized, without having to spend more money and time to take another exam," said Hoang Phong, a fourth-year student.

Thanh Vy, an Accounting student, said she will now feel secure in completing some of her final subjects to graduate on time as her Aptis certificate is recognized by the school.

"The efforts of nearly four months of knocking on doors everywhere by me and my friends have paid off," Vy shared.

Students come to the British Council office in District 10, Ho Chi Minh City, to complain about Aptis certificates on the afternoon of February 28. Photo: Le Nguyen

Aptis is an English proficiency test awarded by the British Council since 2012, recognized in 85 countries and territories. There are three versions of the Aptis test: Aptis General, Aptis Advanced and Aptis for Teachers.

In Vietnam, many universities recognize this type of certificate to consider foreign language output standards for students such as Hanoi National University and Hanoi University of Science and Technology.

According to the British Council, the test has now been changed to Aptis ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages). The test assesses English proficiency in all four skills: Speaking, Listening, Reading and Writing, with levels from A1 to C2 based on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages ​​(CEFR). The test fee is two million VND per session.

Le Nguyen - Duong Tam

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