Taking the university entrance exam these days

Each candidate sits at a computer with a designated area and their registration number written on it. When the exam is scheduled to begin, candidates log in and complete the test on the computer. Upon completion, they click submit, and their score is immediately displayed on the screen.

To enter the examination area, candidates are only allowed to bring their citizen identification card, write it down, and pass through the security gate - Photo: MG

Compared to 25 years ago, university entrance exams are now quite diverse. Candidates also feel much more relaxed and at ease during the exams.

I'm not under too much pressure because there are many exams, giving me many opportunities to choose the highest score for admission. However, I don't take too many exams because the exam fees are quite high, and travel is expensive.

Contestant Thuy Tien ( Tien Giang )

Candidates should relax.

On April 6th, I participated in the computer-based university entrance exam (V-SAT) organized by Saigon University.

The V-SAT is an exam organized by participating schools. The National Center for Educational Testing and Quality Assessment (Ministry of Education and Training) coordinates, supports, and provides the question bank. Currently, dozens of schools organize this exam and use the results for university admissions.

My second exam started at 9 am, so I arrived about 30 minutes early. The school gate and grounds were deserted; people were coming and going freely. There was no longer the scene of parents waiting for their children in front of the gate, with the school doors tightly closed like before.

At the exam area, several candidates taking the second exam, like me, were sitting and waiting for the time to come. I walked around and only saw one candidate reviewing for the history exam. The other candidates seemed quite relaxed.

After the first session ended, Thanh Thang, a student from Hung Vuong High School (Ho Chi Minh City), said he had 60 minutes to spare on the math exam (the exam was 90 minutes long). "I thought I had missed something, so I scrolled up and down several times, but I actually finished the whole exam," Thang said.

Meanwhile, Nguyen Tuan Khai, a student from Pham Phu Thu High School (District 6, Ho Chi Minh City), complained that the math exam was difficult. Khai had decided to apply using the math-literature-history combination. He hoped to get 80 points in math but only got 65. Khai said he had to wait for the literature and history scores to boost his points.

As the exam time approaches, candidates must leave all personal belongings at the locker room, only allowing their citizen identification card and writing materials into the exam room. After depositing their belongings, candidates go to the waiting room, and the invigilator will call them into the exam room when it is time.

In the waiting room, I struck up a conversation with Thuy Tien, a student from Nguyen Dinh Chieu High School (Tien Giang). Tien said that she and her mother had taken a bus to Ho Chi Minh City early that morning and would return home immediately after the exam in the afternoon.

A few days earlier, Tien had also taken the specialized assessment exam of Ho Chi Minh City University of Education. Tien intended to take the V-SAT exam to apply for the literature education major. However, after registering, she learned that the education majors at Saigon University do not consider V-SAT results.

Tien still took the exam and used the results to apply for the Literature Education program at Can Tho University. Tien said that more than half of her class participated in separate exams such as aptitude tests, specialized exams, and V-SAT to increase their chances.

Thuy Tien and Tuan Khai (seated, in white shirts) participated in a separate competition to increase their chances of being selected - Photo: MG

Complete the test quickly, get your score immediately.

At the appointed time, the invigilators called the candidates to the examination room. The examination area was cordoned off with signs warning against unauthorized entry, and invigilators were on duty. Candidates had to pass through the security gate before reaching the examination room door; the invigilators called out their names and checked their identity cards before allowing them into the room.

Each candidate sits at a computer with a slot, marked with their registration number. The invigilator gives each candidate a piece of paper containing their information and login details for the exam system. When the exam papers are opened, candidates log in and take the test on the computer. All subjects are multiple-choice.

In my exam room, there were candidates taking multiple subjects at the same time. I took the history and geography exam, which had 25 questions totaling 150 points with multiple-choice options for each question. The literature exam had 20 multiple-choice questions worth 120 points, and one essay question worth 30 points.

Candidates taking the V-SAT exam wait to be called into the exam room - Photo: MG

After a candidate finishes their exam and submits it, the computer screen will immediately display their score. When the exam time is over, the examination board will print a list of scores for the entire room, and candidates will sign to confirm their scores. All scratch paper will be collected when candidates leave the examination room.

The history exam lasts 60 minutes. The test covers a wide range of topics with various question types such as true/false, matching, and short answer. The literature exam is quite long, using many text passages that candidates are required to read in order to fulfill the requirements and answer questions.

Observing the exam rooms in various subjects, I noticed that many candidates finished early, resting their heads on their desks. Since it was a multiple-choice exam, they could complete it whether they knew the answer or not. This is very different from essay exams, where if you don't know the answer, you'd have to leave the paper blank.

Candidates in the waiting room, waiting to be called into the V-SAT exam room - Photo: MG

Sitting in the back row, when signing the score sheet, I glanced through it and saw that not many candidates had scores above 100 points in any subject. Meeting Tuan Khai again at lunchtime, Khai said he scored 117 points in history. This is a fairly high score. However, including math, Khai only reached 182 points.

"In high school, the history teacher only taught a part of the revised curriculum, while the exam included several questions on this topic. Meanwhile, the graduation exam preparation class hadn't even covered the revised curriculum yet, so I lost points on this section. The questions related to Phan Châu Trinh were from 11th grade, so I forgot them," Khải shared.

You're hoping the Literature score will boost your overall grade. However, Khai said he will take the second round of the V-SAT exam at Saigon University this week, as he registered in advance. Whichever exam he gets better will be used for admission consideration.

The essay prompt has diverse requirements.

Of the three subjects, I felt that the Literature exam had the most open-ended questions. Each question was based on a text passage, likely outside of the textbook, along with accompanying questions. The requirements were quite diverse, testing many of the candidates' skills, from reading comprehension to application. Regardless of the question, the content was provided, and candidates only needed to apply their knowledge and skills to find the correct answer and match the pieces.

Some questions can be answered immediately based on the connecting words, but there are also cases where careful reading, filtering the content, understanding, or remembering the meaning of the poem are required. The 30-point essay section, which asks candidates to write about the meaning of self-study, is not too difficult.

Typing error (without accents)

At the end of the second session, the invigilator allowed the candidates to leave the exam room. However, when the candidates reached the door, the invigilator asked them to return to their seats. More than 15 minutes later, the invigilator announced that in the second session, many candidates had typed Vietnamese without diacritics in the short answer section, so the machine did not grade this part. Therefore, the candidates would be allowed to retake this section.

Technical staff installed Vietnamese language support on the computers, after which candidates logged in and redid the short answer section. This issue extended the second exam session by approximately 60 minutes. However, the candidates' rights were protected.

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MINH GIANG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/di-thi-dai-hoc-thoi-nay-20250411081330134.htm