Why did high-scoring candidates still fail in the first round?

Parents and their children come to school to complete the enrollment procedures this year.

This information was shared during an online television consultation program titled "Are there still opportunities for supplementary admissions?" organized by Thanh Nien Newspaper on the afternoon of August 20th.

High-scoring candidates still fail to get into their preferred programs.

In a question sent to the program, a candidate wrote: "Because I was too confident in my exam scores, I only registered for two nguyện vọng (preferences), and ended up failing both despite being only 0.15-0.25 points short. I deeply regret not having backup plans…". Sharing his thoughts on the program, Master Cao Quang Tu, Director of Admissions at Saigon International University, said: "This story has been warned about many times before candidates register their preferences. Experts have advised against choosing too many preferences, but also against choosing too few to avoid the risk of 'going empty-handed'."

In addition to the above case, Master Tư further analyzed: "There are candidates with quite high scores who still fail to get into their desired programs. This stems from overconfidence; candidates only base their application choices on their scores without considering the overall situation. If you have a high score and many other candidates also have high scores, you need a strategy to choose your programs appropriately for this situation."

However, during this period, Master Quang Tu believes that what candidates need to do is find out about the supplementary admission information of the universities. Currently, many universities are accepting applications for the supplementary admission round until August 31st, for example, Saigon International University. With this plan to end the supplementary admission round, candidates who are admitted in the later round will still have time to enroll at the same time as those admitted in the first round.

Regarding this issue, Mr. Vu Quang Huy, Deputy Director of the Admissions Counseling Center at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, also said: "Some candidates are lucky enough to be admitted to their desired university, while others haven't been so fortunate. Candidates who haven't been admitted to their desired university should carefully consider whether to decline admission and apply for supplementary admissions, as not all universities and majors conduct supplementary admissions. If supplementary admissions are available, the quotas are limited, and the cutoff scores must be at least the same as in the first round."

Experts participated in the online television consultation program of Thanh Nien Newspaper on the afternoon of August 20th.

Candidates who were accepted into their first-choice program still want to… change majors.

Many questions raised during the counseling program concerned whether popular majors still had vacancies for the supplementary admission round. Addressing this concern, Master Cao Quang Tu explained that each university implements its own supplementary admission plan. Therefore, candidates need to monitor the information announced by each university. Currently, many universities have announced supplementary admissions, but others may do so in the coming days. For example, Saigon International University is currently accepting supplementary applications through three methods for all majors, including many that candidates are interested in.

Mr. Vu Quang Huy also stated that Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT) plans to admit approximately 1,000 students in the supplementary round. This includes popular majors such as information technology, multimedia communication, and automotive engineering technology. However, advising students who were admitted in the first round but are hesitant to enroll in the supplementary round, Mr. Quang Huy said: "In this case, students need to think carefully and shouldn't rely too much on the supplementary admissions process because many universities are no longer accepting applications, and some only have limited quotas. Therefore, whether or not to choose to enroll with a 4th or 5th choice on the list depends on the degree of similarity between the chosen major and their preferred field."

Speaking about similar cases, Master Cao Quang Tu said that after the admission scores were announced, some candidates called the school asking if there was any way to change their first-round accepted majors. Among them were candidates who, despite being accepted in their first choice, felt it wasn't the most suitable option or their most preferred major, and wanted to seek additional opportunities for supplementary admissions. Regarding these cases, Master Tu advised: "Actually, each training program has its own value. It's not the case that studying a particular major guarantees employment and success after graduation. A person's success comes from many factors, the most important of which are passion and effort. As long as you have the ability and passion, any choice is a good choice. We don't have the perfect choice, only the most suitable choice."

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/xet-tuyen-dai-hoc-vi-sao-thi-sinh-diem-cao-van-rot-dot-1-185240821094445769.htm