Professor Doctor Nguyen Ngoc Ha, Deputy Director of the Quality Management Department, Ministry of Education and Training, announced this on the afternoon of 4/2. According to him, the 2026 high school graduation examination will continue to assess practical competencies, adhere closely to the new curriculum, and maintain a 4:3:3 differentiation ratio across knowledge, comprehension, and application levels. Therefore, candidates can refer to previous years' exams for their preparation.

The examination encompasses 17 subjects, with the Literature exam in essay format. The remaining subjects will feature multiple-choice questions requiring selection of the correct option, true/false answers, and short answer questions. The short answer format, in particular, makes it difficult for students to guess randomly, thus aiding better differentiation.

In previous years, the Ministry of Education and Training typically released sample exams. Schools and candidates eagerly anticipated these, considering them a crucial resource for preparing for the high school graduation examination.

Last year, many experts assessed the official exam questions as more challenging than the sample exams, surprising candidates, particularly in Mathematics and English.

Candidates in TP HCM taking the 2025 high school graduation examination. Photo: Quynh Tran

The 2026 high school graduation examination is scheduled to take place on 11-12/6, two weeks earlier than in previous years. According to the Ministry, moving the exam forward helps students and teachers focus on improving the quality of regular coursework and completing curriculum content within the academic year.

Approximately one million candidates take the high school graduation examination each year. They can use these results for both graduation certification and university admissions.

Duong Tam