HCMC: Candidates begin "race" to enter 10th grade, competition ratio 1/6

Candidates take the opportunity to review their lessons before taking the exam (Photo: Huyen Nguyen).

This morning, more than 3,500 candidates officially took the 10th grade entrance exam for the 2025-2026 school year at the Gifted High School, Ho Chi Minh City National University. This is one of the high schools with the highest entrance competition rate in the city.

Coming from Binh Duong , Phan Thanh Vinh, a student at Binh Thang Secondary School, said he registered to take the specialized biology class exam this year.

"I'm a little worried but I believe I can do well on the exam to be accepted and study here during my high school years," Vinh said.

Sharing the same sentiment, Hoang Minh Nga, grade 9, Nguyen Du Secondary School, a candidate taking the exam at the testing site 1 (District 5), shared: "This is the first exam I have participated in this year's 10th grade admissions, so I am quite nervous. I have reviewed carefully, hoping to do well in literature and English."

Minh Thong, from Ton That Tung Secondary School in Ho Chi Minh City, said he was quite comfortable entering the exam. However, Thong was a bit worried about math because it was his weaker subject than the other subjects. The male student will take both chemistry and literature exams.

More than 3,500 candidates attended the exam at 3 locations (Photo: Huyen Nguyen).

Dr. Tran Nam Dung, Vice Principal of the school, said that this year's exam had more than 20% of candidates coming from other provinces and cities. More than 500 exam supervisors also came from member schools of Ho Chi Minh City National University.

According to statistics, this year the school received more than 3,500 applications, down nearly 9% compared to the previous school year. Although the number of applications has been adjusted, the school's average competition ratio remains at a remarkable level of 1/6, down 0.5 compared to last year.

Parents hug and encourage their children before the exam (Photo: Huyen Nguyen).

This ratio means that for every 6 candidates who register, only about 1 student has a chance to be admitted to this prestigious school. This shows that the attraction and reputation of the Gifted High School is still highly appreciated by many parents and students, creating a competitive "race" for a place to study here.

Specifically, the English, Math and Literature majors continue to receive the most attention from candidates. Specifically, English has nearly 1,270 candidates registered, followed by Math with more than 1,000 students, and Literature with 782 students registered.

Number of registrations for entrance exams to grade 10 at Gifted High School (Chart: Huyen Nguyen).

The 2025 10th grade entrance exam of the Gifted High School will have 4 exams. Of which, there are 3 non-specialized exams, including: Math, Literature and English. One specialized exam is optional among the subjects: Math, Literature, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Information Technology and English.

Each candidate can register for a maximum of 2 specialized exams. In case of registering for 2 specialized subjects, candidates must ensure to choose 1 subject from each of the following subject groups:

Group 1 includes math and literature; group 2 includes physics, chemistry, biology, computer science and English.

The content and structure of the exam remain similar to the 10th grade entrance exams of previous school years. The school instructs parents to refer to the exam questions and answers for the 2024-2025 school year at https://ptnk.edu.vn/cong-bo-de-thi-chinh-thuc-tuyen-sinh-lop-10-nam-hoc-2024-2025/.

Grade 10 exam schedule for the 2025-2026 school year of Gifted High School, Ho Chi Minh City National University.

The Gifted High School enrolls and trains students from grades 10 to 12, and is part of the Ho Chi Minh City National University system. Each year, the school enrolls about 600 students in grade 10.

Last year, the school's 10th grade admissions ratio was 1/6.4, the highest in the past 6 years.

The target of enrollment is expanded to provinces and cities outside of Ho Chi Minh City. This is where many excellent students from the southern provinces gather to study. The exam is organized separately, not overlapping with the 10th grade entrance exam of the provinces and cities.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/tphcm-thi-sinh-bat-dau-cuoc-dua-vao-lop-10-ty-le-choi-16-20250524061304199.htm