Students take part in an English competition in Khánh Hòa Province. — VNA/VNS Photo Phan Sáu

HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Education and Training (MoET) has asked localities to stop direct admission for 10th graders with International English Language Testing System (IELTS) certificates.

The request was stated clearly in an official dispatch sent by the MoET to localities on Friday evening.

The official dispatch is about regulations on public high school grade 10 enrolment for the 2024-2025 school year.

The requirement was released after a number of localities announced their 10th grade admission plan for the 2024-2025 school year. They intended to apply priority marks, or direct admission, for candidates possessing IELTS certificates from 4.0 or higher.

In its official dispatch, the MoET asked provinces and cities to properly implement the junior secondary and high school admission regulations issued in 2019.

Localities that approved plans for 10th grade high school enrolment that do not comply with regulations on direct admission and priority policies issued in 2019 must adjust and publicly announce new plans.

The MoET will inspect 10th grade enrolment in some localities.

​According to the admission regulations for junior secondary and high schools, candidates are directly admitted to 10th grade if they belong to one of four groups: studying in ethnic group boarding schools; are from ethnic groups with very little population; are disabled; or win national and international awards in culture, arts, sports, science and technology.

If candidates are children of martyrs, invalids, sick soldiers, people exposed to toxic chemicals, labour heroes, armed forces, or living and studying in an area with difficult socio-economic conditions, they are allowed to have encouraged additional marks. The mark levels are regulated by each locality.

Candidates with excellent student awards at the provincial or city level, or with international foreign language certificates, do not receive any priority.

However, over the past five years, many localities have added one or two priority marks, exempted from exams, and directly recruited candidates with 4.0 IELTS or higher, or having won excellent student awards at the provincial level.

Previously, Tuyên Quang northern province announced direct admission of students with IELTS scores of 5.0 or higher. For candidates registering to enrol in the English class for gifted students, the direct admission requirement is IELTS score of 7.0 or higher. The province will organise an exam with three subjects including math, literature and foreign language to enrol 10th graders.

A similar regulation was also declared in Lào Cai northern mountainous province and Quảng Trị central province.

One of the pioneering localities in adding IELTS scores to 10th grade admission is Nghệ An central province.

From 2021, Nghệ An Province has directly recruited students with IELTS scores of 6.0 to public high schools with English classes for excellent students and 7.0 or higher to Phan Bội Châu High School for Gifted Students. The work was believed to promote foreign language skills of local students. — VNS