Female student of Hanoi - Amsterdam School wins full scholarship to University of Sydney with 2 essays about herself

Full scholarship with 2 essays about yourself

Do Chuc An, a 12th grade Cambridge student (dual degree program), Hanoi - Amsterdam High School for the Gifted, received a 100% scholarship from the University of Sydney (USYD) while on a class trip. As soon as he saw the email title, An immediately clicked to view it and had to read it over and over again to make sure he hadn't read it wrong.

"After receiving the admission notice, I was overwhelmed with happiness. I immediately told my family and friends and that evening I was still a little excited," An shared.

Do Chuc An, 12th grade Cambridge student (dual degree program), Hanoi - Amsterdam High School for the Gifted (Photo: NVCC)

Chuc An chose the University of Sydney because it has the world's leading teaching quality. This school is currently ranked 18th in the QS World University Rankings 2025. The support level for female students is equivalent to 4 billion VND. With the scholarship achieved, her family is fully qualified to pay for the cost of studying abroad.

Chuc An started preparing her study abroad application from grade 10. In addition to her grades, An had to submit two essays of about 500 - 800 words to answer two questions. The female student tried to optimize the allowed space to portray herself most clearly, as well as impress the admissions board.

In question 1, the question asks you to introduce yourself and your achievements in high school. An highlights your outstanding personality traits such as curiosity and desire to learn and explore the world. These traits always motivate you to try to improve and develop yourself, while also having a multi-dimensional perspective and effectively exploiting data.

Next, An recounted two stories that happened on her journey to adulthood and left valuable lessons. The first story was about the IELTS exam. Based on a solid English foundation, An set a goal of achieving 7.5 IELTS or higher after 1.5 months. Although many people said that this goal was difficult to achieve, she still outlined a clear plan and implemented it carefully. The result was 8.0 IELTS. Through that, An learned the lesson that she needs to believe in herself and make a specific plan to achieve her goals, instead of worrying and losing confidence just because of what others say.

The second story is about the 10th grade entrance exam. While she was worried about the "close" exam time, An was introduced to a project to support students to pass the transfer exam. In addition to her efforts, the female student was enthusiastically guided by her seniors, taught effective review strategies and achieved the set goals. After completing the race, An chose to stay with the project, continuing to help students in the same situation as her.

"This story leaves me with a lesson about helping each other and spreading positive values ​​in society," An said.

Wishing An success in preparing 2 essays to conquer the University of Sydney's admissions board (Photo: NVCC)

The second question was about what he wanted to achieve after completing his studies at USYD, as well as his future goals with a degree from the School. An talked about the reasons why he chose to study Computer Science and Data Science at USYD. He also talked about his desire to become a leading data scientist - someone who can solve big problems with data and contribute more to society with his professional skills.

At the end of the essay, An mentioned the values ​​that the School brings such as students having a solid knowledge foundation from the teaching and guidance of leading experts; increasing opportunities to work with businesses to solve practical problems. Or the opportunity to do research and write a thesis helps An prepare for her post-graduate plans.

"Choosing Computer Science as a matter of fate"

Her parents studied abroad in Russia, so An was oriented towards studying abroad since she was young. Having set her goal from the beginning, after 3 years of studying at Hanoi - Amsterdam High School, An's average score was 9.8. In addition, the female student also achieved an IELTS score of 8.0, SAT score (standardized test used for admission to American universities) of 1580/1600 - in the top 1% in the world.

Chuc An takes a photo with his family (Photo: NVCC)

As a dual degree student at Hanoi - Amsterdam High School for the Gifted, Chuc An has access to two educational programs: the Vietnamese high school program and the British A Level program. Specifically, with the dual degree program, students will study Math, Physics, Chemistry, and Business in English.

This is also the reason why An chose to major in Computer Science at the University of Sydney. Because when she started studying the A Level program, she was exposed to knowledge of probability and statistics (Maths), practiced data collection and processing skills through Physics; understood the importance of using data and optimizing for businesses through Business. In addition, the female student realized that many of her own characteristics were suitable for the data science industry such as: logical thinking, ability in Maths, curiosity and love for problem solving.

"Computer science is not a major I have been interested in since I was a child. It was like an unexpected opportunity that came to me on the journey of determining and finding a direction," Chuc An admitted.

Realizing that this major is quite difficult, especially for girls, An researched computer science and data science to best prepare before entering university.

Female student of Hanoi - Amsterdam High School for the Gifted pursuing Computer Science at the University of Sydney (Photo: NVCC)

Learning has been one of Chuc An's favorite hobbies since she was a child. The female student enjoys acquiring new knowledge and understanding a subject thoroughly, so she often listens attentively to lectures and actively asks questions whenever she doesn't understand clearly.

“Although there are times when I feel tired, discouraged or procrastinate, I always try to maintain my passion for learning, because it is really important. I find joy when I feel like I understand the lesson and can apply the knowledge I have learned to my exercises and exams,” said Chuc An.

Chuc An will go to Sydney to study in July. Before flying, the female student tried to prepare everything carefully to have a smooth start. An hopes that studying abroad will be a completely new journey, where she will learn a lot of useful knowledge and broaden her perspective.

Source: https://daibieunhandan.vn/giao-duc--y-te1/nu-sinh-truong-ha-noi-amsterdam-chinh-phuc-hoc-bao-toan-phan-dai-hoc-sydney-voi-2-bai-luan-ve-ban-than--i375860/