Ho Chi Minh City recruits additional 10th grade students: Many schools have 'blank records'

However, the reality shows that the enrollment atmosphere at many units is quite gloomy, even some top schools have no students registering.

Top schools are also difficult

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training recently announced the additional enrollment quota for grade 10 for the 2025-2026 school year for 37 high schools in Region 1 (Ho Chi Minh City before the merger), with a total of 2,340 quotas. The additional enrollment period is from July 30 to 5:00 p.m. on August 4. According to records, while some schools have a number of applications exceeding the quota, many schools are "unsold". Notably, there is a school with the highest standard score in the city that has "no application".

At Dien Hong Secondary and High School (Dien Hong, Ho Chi Minh City), where 72 additional students are being recruited, 80 applications have been received by noon on August 4. Mr. Nguyen Tien Tan - Principal of the school said that up to this point, the highest score submitted is 18, the lowest is 11.75; most candidates scored between 13 and 14 points.

Similarly, Nguyen Thi Dinh High School for the Gifted in Sports (Phu Dinh Ward, Ho Chi Minh City) recruited 41 students with a score of 12.5. Mr. Le Quang Ninh - Principal of the school shared: "By the morning of August 4, 41 students had registered for admission. With this situation, this year's enrollment will exceed the target."

On the contrary, Le Trong Tan High School (Tan Son Nhi, Ho Chi Minh City) recruited 52 additional students with scores of 18.5 or higher, but by noon on August 4, only 1 application had been submitted. Mr. Nguyen Anh Nam - Principal of the school commented: "The situation of additional recruitment is not optimistic because most of the students with scores of 18.5 or higher have been admitted to their third choice."

At Phu Nhuan High School, Mr. Tran Cong Tuan - Principal, informed: "Currently, no students have submitted their application for admission." Mr. Tuan explained that the standard score for the first choice to enter the school is 22.5. The school is still short of 20 quotas because many admitted students were junior high school students at Nguyen Khuyen Junior High School - High School but refused to enroll because the school does not organize boarding. In addition, some students chose to study abroad, or were admitted to the Gifted High School (Ho Chi Minh City National University) - which organizes its own exam and announces the results before the 10th grade entrance exam of the Department of Education and Training.

Parents and students come to submit applications at Dien Hong Secondary and High School.

Should allow to exceed target

Ho Chi Minh City has implemented additional 10th grade admission for public high schools that are short of enrollment quotas for the past 3 years to ensure the rights of students who do not pass all 3 wishes. However, the results in the past have not met expectations. In the 2023-2024 school year, only 1,014 students were admitted for additional enrollment, accounting for about 25% of the total of nearly 4,000 quotas. In the 2024-2025 school year, the number of admitted students increased to 1,400 out of a total of 2,203 quotas, reaching 63.54%.

In 2025, the additional admission conditions are that students do not pass any of their wishes to public high schools, have a total score of 3 subjects (Math, Literature, Foreign Language) and priority and incentive points (if any) greater than or equal to the standard score of the first wish of the school they wish to register for. Each student can only register for admission to one school and cannot change after submitting their application. With this regulation, no student will have a high score as high as the standard score for the top school but fail all 3 wishes. Therefore, it is understandable that top schools, despite having a team of good teachers and good facilities, still lack students.

Some top high schools in Ho Chi Minh City such as Tran Dai Nghia Secondary - High School, Nguyen Thuong Hien High School, Le Quy Don High School, Practicing High School (under Ho Chi Minh City University of Education), Phu Nhuan High School... although they are the dream schools of many students, still have to recruit more students due to insufficient enrollment. The reason is said to be that some students choose to study at private schools based on their personal wishes, study abroad or have been admitted to the Gifted High School (Ho Chi Minh City National University).

In addition, the additional enrollment of grade 10 in Ho Chi Minh City this year is also affected by the sharp decrease in the number of candidates. The enrollment rate in public schools has reached 91%, causing the additional enrollment source to be almost exhausted. Meanwhile, for the 2024 grade 10 enrollment period, the Department of Education and Training announced additional enrollment for 36 schools with 2,203 quotas.

Last year, about 20,000 students failed all three of their admissions, and were eligible to take the supplementary admission exam, but only 1,400 were admitted. This year, only about 5,000 students failed all three of their admissions, a quarter of the number last year, while the supplementary admission quota remains approximately the same.

Faced with the reality that many high schools, especially top schools, lack students, while many students cannot study at their desired schools, Mr. Huynh Thanh Phu - Principal of Bui Thi Xuan High School (Ben Thanh Ward, Ho Chi Minh City) proposed: The Department of Education and Training of Ho Chi Minh City needs to have strong measures to limit the situation of students from private schools registering for entrance exams just to "experience". This can cause students to take up public school places even though they do not really need them, causing disadvantages for other students.

Mr. Phu also pointed out that in the 2025-2026 school year enrollment plan of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, the Chairman of the City People's Committee directed the Department of Education and Training to allocate grade 10 quotas and allow enrollment beyond the quota if necessary.

Specifically, to ensure enough students are recruited into specialized 10th grade, the HCMC People's Committee allows the Department of Education and Training to adjust the quota to increase but not exceed 20%. Therefore, Mr. Phu suggested that the city should apply this mechanism to top high schools that are short of students, instead of only applying it to specialized schools.

When submitting his application to Dien Hong Secondary and High School, Nguyen Ba Quoc Dat shared: “Although the results of the recent 10th grade entrance exam were not as expected, I was encouraged by my family so I was not under any pressure. With a score of 12.5, I decided to apply to Dien Hong Secondary and High School - where this year, 72 additional students were recruited with a score of 11.75. Although I do not know the results yet, I still hope to study in a public environment.”

Source: https://giaoducthoidai.vn/tphcm-tuyen-sinh-bo-sung-lop-10-nhieu-truong-trang-ho-so-post742826.html