VietNamNet Bridge - HCM City National University has announced that it will admit students from 82 high schools for the gifted throughout the country based on letters of recommendation and student essays. 

 

Students need to show letters of recommendations from prestigious organizations and individuals or their essays to apply at the school.

Students to be admitted to the HCM City National University’s member schools are expected to account for 10 percent of total students.

Since the HCM City National University is one of the most prestigious schools in Vietnam, its decision on enrolling students with ‘western method’ has caught the special attention from the public.

Tien Phong quoted some educators as saying that the school has taken a ‘bold step’ enrolling students not based on tests and exam scores, but on how students show their abilities in their essays.

Students need to show letters of recommendations from prestigious organizations and individuals or their essays to apply at the school.

In fact, the enrolment method has been applied for hundreds of years, though it is still unfamiliar in Vietnam. 

Most prestigious schools in the US and Singapore request students to submit letters of recommendations and essays. 

However, though the method is believed to have many advantages, the decision by the HCM City National University still has raised controversy.

A teacher of a high school for the gifted in Hanoi noted that he can see high risks, including subjectivity in assessing students’ abilities and phony essays.

The teacher went on to say that many other schools also consider letters of recommendations and student essays. However, the letters and essays only give students certain advantages.

Van Nhu Cuong, president of Luong The Vinh people-founded High School in Hanoi, commented that while the method is popular worldwide, it is unsuitable in the Vietnamese conditions. 

Cuong said Vietnam has a high cheating rate and negative behavior may occur in different ways. 

Students may give bribes to get letters of recommendations or they may ask others to write essays for them.

Nguyen Quoc Chinh, head of training, said that negatives always exist no matter what method is applied. He still believes that this is a good way to find the best students.

Also according to Chinh, HCM City National University’s member schools would set up councils to be in charge of considering essays and letters of recommendation.

In 2015, the university applied the same enrolment method, admitting students from five high schools for the gifted. “The result was very good and the school could enroll good students,” Chinh said.

In the past, students must attend national exams organized by the Ministry of Education and Training to enter universities. But now, with the autonomy policy, schools can set up their own enrolment plans.


Zing