Nearly one million Vietnamese high school students begin crucial exam

The first day of exams began on June 25 with a 120-minute literature test in the morning and a 90-minute maths test in the afternoon.

These are two of the three compulsory tests, which also include an English exam, which will take place for 60 minutes on the afternoon of June 26.

Depending on the colleges which the students wish to attend, they will take either of the two optional composite tests, natural sciences or social sciences, on June 26 and 27 respectively.

The test in natural sciences includes questions on physics, chemistry and biology, while the social sciences paper tests the students’ knowledge in history, geography and civic education.

Except for the literature test, all of the other tests are in the multiple-choice format.

According to the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET), nearly three quarters of the registered students will apply for college and university placement, while the rest are taking the exam for graduation purposes only.

The exam is being administered at more than 2,100 test venues across the country where security has been tightened.

In addition to high school teachers, the exam invigilators include staff from universities, colleges and provincial education departments. Another 4,000 inspectors have also been dispatched by the MOET to prevent cheating during the three-day exam.