Twice “skipping grades” with impressive results

In 2025, among the 142 First Prizes awarded in Hanoi’s city-level academic competition for 12th graders, only three students were from the 10th grade, and Ho Nhat Hao from Quoc Oai High School was the only one from a public school in the suburbs to win First Prize in Informatics.

Hao told VietNamNet that he was happy and surprised by the result, as he didn’t expect to perform so well.

“After the exam, I thought I did okay, but I didn’t expect to win First Prize in a city-level competition,” the student shared.

Recognizing his early talent, teachers selected Hao for the school’s team to compete at the city level, partly because of his previous experience in “skipping grades.”

In 6th grade, Hao started using computers. By 7th grade, his interest in programming grew, and he began to explore Informatics more seriously.

That same year, Hao entered the 9th-grade district-level contest for excellent students and won third prize in Informatics. In 8th grade, he won First Prize at the district level and Second Prize citywide. In 9th grade, he once again took home First Prize at the city level.

Asked about his learning methods, Hao said he doesn’t have any special secrets compared to his peers.

For Informatics, according to Hao, it’s important to practice a lot and read theoretical materials. Every day, he dedicates about 2–3 hours to Informatics, while balancing time with other subjects.

“I solve many different types of problems and read additional materials online. When I come across new concepts while solving problems, I trace them back, read more deeply, and practice repeatedly. That way, I know exactly what I still lack. One of the websites I often use is VNOI Wiki,” Hao shared.

Hao is also highly skilled in Math, having scored 9.75 out of 10 in Hanoi’s high school entrance exam.

“In terms of thinking skills, Math and Informatics have some similarities. But I have a greater passion for Informatics. The reasoning skills I gained from Math help me a lot when studying Informatics,” Hao added, noting that Informatics contains many interesting concepts not found in standard textbooks, which gives him room to be creative.

Faced frustration many times, but never gave up

For Hao, each time he solves a complex programming problem, he feels a sense of joy and accomplishment.

“In this subject, some problems seem difficult at first glance, which can be discouraging. But the more you figure them out, the more exciting they become, it satisfies my curiosity. I’ve had moments of frustration because the material was hard to understand, but I’ve never thought of giving up,” Hao said.

When he encounters a challenge, Hao usually searches for related materials or video lectures online and keeps practicing until he understands.

“There was a time I spent an entire day just figuring out how to approach and solve a single problem. The key to doing well in Informatics is persistence and never giving up. If I can’t solve something on my own, I’ll ask for help from my teachers,” Hao explained.

Phung Thi Nhu Quynh, Hao’s homeroom and Math teacher, expressed her happiness at his result, especially since this “grade-skipping” challenge (competition) was even harder than what Hao had faced in middle school.

She described Hao as an outstanding student who is humble and always willing to help classmates.

“Hao is very quick-thinking. Whenever I give the class a problem, he can immediately suggest multiple ways to solve it. His strong Math background gives him an advantage in Informatics. In class, he is disciplined, mature, and friendly,” Quynh said.

As for future plans, Hao shared that he will continue to focus on completing high school. He aims to qualify for Hanoi’s national team in the Informatics Olympiad when he reaches 11th grade.

Thuy Nga