Ho Chi Minh City: Reforming the primary school enrollment process.

Recently, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training issued regulations on enrollment for primary and secondary schools, applicable to wards, communes, and special zones. Accordingly, enrollment is conducted in two forms: entrance exams or selection based on academic records, depending on the specific characteristics of each locality. For first grade, enrollment is conducted citywide online. Parents register their information at the portal https://tuyensinhdaucap.hcm.edu.vn, with the most important step being declaring their actual place of residence for verification against the national population database. From this data, the education sector applies a GIS map model to determine school placement: students are prioritized for the school closest to their residence; if a school has reached its enrollment capacity, the system will assign them to the next closest school.

The admission process for grade 6 will essentially continue to follow the GIS model as in grade 1. However, it is expected that some secondary schools with a number of applications exceeding their capacity will organize aptitude tests to filter candidates. In previous years, about 5-6 schools in the city applied this method. This year, as of early December 2025, Tran Quoc Toan Secondary School (Binh Trung ward – former Thu Duc City area) has proposed to conduct an aptitude test. Schools such as Nguyen An Khuong, Tran Dai Nghia, Nguyen Huu Tho, Hoa Lu… have also implemented aptitude tests in previous years and have shown positive results in improving the quality of incoming students, creating a healthy competitive environment, and encouraging students to strive harder. It is predicted that some secondary schools will maintain this method in the 2026-2027 school year.

For 10th grade, the upcoming school year is considered the most significantly adjusted admissions process, and also the first time it has been implemented since the merger. Although Binh Duong and Ba Ria - Vung Tau previously held entrance exams for 10th grade, the reality shows that the exam in the former Ho Chi Minh City was larger in scale and highly competitive, especially in central schools – where many parents likened it to "even more stressful than the university entrance exam." From 2026-2027, Ho Chi Minh City will apply both exam-based and selection-based admission methods simultaneously, depending on the locality. The Department of Education and Training has announced three official exam subjects: Vietnamese Literature, Mathematics, and a foreign language (mainly English). The number of candidates is expected to be around 150,000. The choice of exam-based or selection-based admission method and the specific roadmap will be further guided by the Department in the coming time.

According to Mr. Nguyen Van Phong, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training, wards, communes, special zones, and schools must strictly implement the enrollment plan approved by the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee; coordinate and standardize the online enrollment process; and ensure accurate, scientific , public, and transparent student allocation. The People's Committees of wards, communes, and special zones are responsible for verifying residency, guiding parents in online registration, ensuring students have personal identification codes, and that data is fully updated. At the same time, localities must closely coordinate with the Department of Education and Training in reviewing and accurately compiling statistics on the number of children of enrollment age, as well as enrollment needs in bordering areas.

Doan Xa

Source: https://daidoanket.vn/tp-ho-chi-minh-doi-moi-tuyen-sinh-dau-cap.html

Comment (0)