Benchmark picture

  This year, after the first round of university admission registration, more than 660,000 candidates nationwide registered their wishes, equivalent to 66% of the number of candidates registering for the high school graduation exam. The total number of registered wishes is more than 3.4 million. On average, each candidate registers 5 wishes. After 10 virtual filtering rounds, on the afternoon of August 22, the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) finished the virtual filtering and returned the admission data to universities. August 22 and 23 are the peak days for universities to announce the first round of admission scores. No later than 5:00 p.m. on August 24, schools must announce the admission scores.

Candidates find information about universities in 2023.

Thus, after the virtual filtering process ended, most universities have determined the preliminary admission scores. Although some schools have not yet returned the final results, in general, health continues to be a group of majors with high admission scores in the 2023 university entrance exam, ranging from 24.2 to 28.75 points. These are the majors chosen by many candidates. The engineering-technology group is also one of the majors with high admission scores this year. Among them, the admission score of Hanoi University of Science and Technology has a range of admission scores based on high school graduation exam results from 21 to 29.42 points. Information technology, computer science, computer engineering, data science and artificial intelligence, and cyber security are extremely "hot" majors with admission scores that are almost at the ceiling.

The economics-management group has the third highest benchmark score, ranging from 24.37 to 28.25 points. The benchmark score of the National Economics University is all from 26 points or higher, of which the public relations major has the highest score with 28.6 points. The benchmark score of the University of Economics and Law (Ho Chi Minh City National University) has no major below 24 points... One of the main reasons for the increase in the benchmark score in 2023 compared to 2022 is that the score distribution of the high school graduation exam in 2023 tends to increase in many subjects, especially Math and Literature. This helps candidates have the opportunity to be admitted to top universities and colleges.

The social science group still has a lower admission score than the above groups, ranging from 24 to 27 points. Notably, the basic science group has the lowest admission score, ranging from 19 to 24 points. Majors such as nuclear engineering technology (21.3 points), meteorology and climatology, oceanography, geology, environmental resource monitoring and surveillance technology of the University of Natural Sciences (Vietnam National University, Hanoi) all only require 20 points; mechanical engineering of Phenikaa University requires 19 points... These are all professions with high social demand but are difficult to recruit, with low admission scores.

Based on two types of benchmark scores (thinking assessment test results and high school graduation exam results), Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Phong Dien, Vice President of Hanoi University of Science and Technology, said: “The rankings in the majors considered "hot" that candidates are interested in, especially those related to technology 4.0, are always at a high level. Majors with traditional characteristics such as mechanical engineering or chemical engineering have benchmark scores at an average and low level, close to the threshold for receiving applications. This has been happening for many years.”

Important science majors find it difficult to attract candidates

The benchmark scores for basic science majors have tended to decrease in recent years due to the low number of candidates applying for admission. According to the announcement of the Ministry of Education and Training, for three consecutive years (2020-2022), the fields of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, life sciences, natural sciences and social services have all topped the list of the worst-performing fields. Even at top universities, the admission results for basic science majors are not very positive.

Candidates taking the 2023 high school exam.

According to Deputy Minister of Education and Training Hoang Minh Son, the field of mathematics and natural sciences, including basic sciences, are fundamental and essential for the development of science and technology and the socio-economy of each country. However, the rate of new students studying and enrolling has tended to decrease in recent years. In 2022, the number of newly recruited university students in this field accounted for only about 1.3% of the total number of students in all fields. Even for students from specialized schools, which are prioritized for investment, the rate of choosing to study these fields at university level is not high. What is worrying is that the average admission score of admitted students in most of these fields is at the average level and below the average of all training fields (except for the field of mathematics). This situation is threatening to lead to a shortage of high-quality science and technology human resources for the country. Professor, Dr. Pham Duc Chinh, Institute of Mechanics, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology said that only 1-2% of Vietnamese students study basic sciences, while the corresponding rate in developed countries such as the US, Germany, UK, France, Japan, Korea, Thailand, Singapore... is around 6-7% or more.

Candidates complete admission procedures at Hanoi University of Science and Technology in 2022.

Associate Professor, Dr. Huynh Quyet Thang, Director of Hanoi University of Science and Technology, shared: “The university enrollment registration data in the past 2-3 years shows that the number of people registering for science majors has decreased significantly, decreasing by 3% each year. When the scientific and technical staff decreases, the quality will decrease. Thus, who will rely on to innovate education and training to meet the needs of industrialization and modernization in Vietnam in the spirit of Resolution No. 29-NQ/TW on fundamental and comprehensive innovation of education and training, meeting the requirements of industrialization and modernization in the conditions of a socialist-oriented market economy and international integration?”

The decline in benchmark scores and enrollment in basic science majors in recent years will affect the future occupational structure. Unlike technical professions that can form, develop and decline over time, basic majors always develop steadily, stay one step ahead, create the premise for knowledge acquisition and are the basis for the advancement of applied and technological majors. However, human resources in key majors serving the goal of industrialization and modernization of the country are becoming increasingly difficult to recruit.

According to experts, the development of research and training in the field of science and technology in Vietnam can only really flourish if there is financial support from the State and leading enterprises; there is a more autonomous and flexible mechanism for universities and research institutes in cooperation, training, transfer... In particular, career guidance and communication work needs to be done better at the secondary level. Important professions of society need to be known more, helping learners have more sustainable choices for the future.

The Ministry of Education and Training requests that schools not require candidates to confirm their admission or enroll before August 24, and not to complete the admission confirmation or enroll before 5:00 p.m. on September 8, 2023 (including for joint training programs with foreign countries). All candidates are required to confirm their admission online on the system. Failure to do so will result in the candidate being considered to have renounced their previous admission.

Article and photos: THU HA

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