VietNamNet Bridge - Many educators and students have expressed their disappointment about the 2015 enrolment season, saying that the 2-in-1 plan designed by the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) has failed.

Under the new enrolment scheme, universities enroll students based on student registrations. Students who have high school exam scores equal to or higher than the floor mark stipulated by MOET can apply for university study. 

The problem is that students, after registering, have to keep a close watch over the lists of registered students. 

They can cancel the registrations if they have to compete with many better candidates and have little chance of being admitted. 

Cuong said he cannot find any advantage in the scheme because students have no criteria to consider before determining which schools to apply for.

“I feel as if students are gambling when applying to schools,” he said.

Cuong said students know how many students have higher scores, how many schools they can enroll in, and how many students each school plans to admit. 

Schools know the number of students they can enroll and the scores on the national exam. 

But hey don’t know how many students for each training major they can expect.

“As a result, schools cannot take the initiative in implementing their enrolment plans,” Cuong said.

“Meanwhile, students have to run a race, but they don’t know the way to follow,” he said, adding that information provided by the ministry cannot help students make decisions.

A high school teacher in Hanoi noted that with the current enrolment scheme, even students with high exam scores may also fail to register for university education.

“Students have 20 days to register, and spend the 20 days in the state of anxious suspense because they are not sure if they can successfully enroll in the schools they want,” he commented.

When asked to comment about the 2015 2-in-1 national exam (one national exam is organized for two purposes – recognizing students’ end of general education and selecting best students for universities), Cuong said: “I cannot see any success of the plan so far.”

“If MOET continues applying the same scheme for subsequent years, Vietnam’s education will taste miserable failure,” he commented.

Hoang Viet Thang, a parent in Thanh Hoa province, said the education reform designed by MOET has been “doing more harm than good”.

“The 2-in-1 exam does not help us save money and time. We have had to stay in Hanoi for the last several days to update information. We feel insecure,” he said.

Thanh Mai