In recent years, university admissions based on high school transcripts have often required extremely high scores - some majors nearly perfect. In 2025, however, the gap between transcript scores and national high school exam scores has widened significantly.

Transcript-based admission has become the “main gateway” for hundreds of universities, with some allocating up to 70% of seats through this method. But the large gap between transcript grades and graduation exam results has raised concerns over fairness and quality. From 2025, many institutions have reduced or eliminated this admission route.

Transcript scores exceed exam scores by up to 2.26 points

This year marks the first cohort to study and take graduation exams under Vietnam’s 2018 General Education Program. Statistics show that in all 12 subjects, the average transcript score was higher than the graduation exam score - by between 0.12 and 2.26 points.

Industrial Technology had the largest gap (8.05 vs. 5.79), followed by Mathematics (7.03 vs. 4.78), Biology (7.61 vs. 5.78), and English (6.95 vs. 5.38). Other significant differences included Chemistry (1.31), Informatics (1.20), and History (1.17), while Literature had the smallest (0.12).

Although such disparities are not new - under the 2006 curriculum the gap sometimes reached three points - the consistency across multiple subjects this year remains striking. A high school teacher suggested that differences stem from tougher exam papers compared to school assessments, and the lack of standardization in grading. Graduation exams, designed for university selection, naturally create wider score spreads, while transcript grading may be more lenient.

University admission combinations show even bigger gaps - up to 5.39 points
When combined into university admission subject sets, the differences grow. For example, in the popular B00 combination (Biology, Chemistry, Math), the average transcript score was 22.01 compared to 16.62 in the exam - a gap of 5.39 points. D07 was close behind at 5.13 points, A01 at 4.21, and both A00 and D00 at nearly four points.

Admission score conversion widens the divide

For the first time, universities have applied conversion formulas to equate scores between transcript and exam-based admissions. The results still show significant gaps.

At Ho Chi Minh City University of Law, the largest difference reached 4.5 points in D07, 4.1 in A01, and around 4 points in several others. At Ho Chi Minh City University of Economics, conversion differences ranged from 2.6 to 3.5 points. Ho Chi Minh City University of Agriculture and Forestry set a fixed conversion factor of 1.125, meaning a graduation score of 20 equates to a transcript score of 22.5, with the gap growing as scores rise.

Other universities like Van Lang reported gaps as large as five points between the two methods. Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry used tiered conversion formulas where gaps ranged from four points to over three, depending on score brackets.

University administrators argue that these conversion rules reflect actual historical differences between the two score types, given that transcripts are built over years of continuous assessment, while the graduation exam is a one-time high-stakes test. Some also note that transcripts allow for gradual improvement, whereas the national exam offers no second chances.

Part two of this VietNamNet series will explore the decline of transcript-based admissions and why universities are turning away from this once-dominant method.

Le Huyen