4 students win National First Prize in a specialized school in Ho Chi Minh City

The 2025-2026 national excellent student selection exam marked a special milestone for Tran Dai Nghia High School for the Gifted (HCMC) with 4 students winning first prizes in English. Notably, the students came from two classes, each class had two students winning the highest prizes.

Nguyen Tuan Phong - Tran Gia Vy: Three consecutive years of winning the national excellent student award

Nguyen Tuan Phong and Tran Gia Vy are two of the typical faces when they were in the same class, in the same team and both won first prizes at the national excellent student selection exam for the 2025-2026 school year.

Few people know that this year's achievement is the result of a persistent journey lasting three consecutive years. Both Tuan Phong and Gia Vy won the second prize in the national excellent student exam when they were in 10th grade, the first prize when they were in 11th grade and continued to maintain the first prize in 12th grade.

According to Tuan Phong, maintaining his form for many consecutive years is a significant challenge.

Every year when I join the national team, I have to adjust my learning style because the requirements and pressure are different. The early stage of participating in the national team was the most difficult time, when I had not determined the appropriate learning method and had to learn to accept mistakes to progress," the male student shared.

Meanwhile, Tran Gia Vy believes that the biggest challenge of the final year is not in knowledge but in psychology. After winning high prizes in previous years, he is forced to find a new goal for himself to avoid falling into a state of contentment.

I set a goal to overcome myself in previous years, instead of comparing myself to others," Gia Vy said.

As classmates for many years, studying together, practicing together and witnessing each other's progress has become a positive motivation for both of us not to let ourselves be negligent throughout the review process.

Le Quang Loc: Overcoming his own expectations

In 12th grade CA2, Le Quang Loc entered the exam with a rather cautious attitude. Previously, the male student had won the Third Prize and he himself did not place too much expectation for this year's exam.

Before the results came, I thought my essay was not really good, especially the writing and speaking part. I just hoped to win a consolation prize and I was happy," Quang Loc shared.

However, the final result exceeded expectations when he won the First Prize. According to Quang Loc, the biggest difficulty in 12th grade is balancing time between reviewing the team and preparing for the high school graduation exam.

There were times when I was very tired, even thinking about giving up. But I told myself this is my last year, I have to try a little harder," the male student said.

Le Anh Khoa: When the pressure of achievement is relieved

For Le Anh Khoa, this year's First Prize is of special significance. Previously, the achievement of winning the Second Prize in 11th grade once made the male student place heavy expectations on himself.

At that time, I always thought I had to win a higher prize, I had to be better than others. But the more pressure, the more unhappy I became with myself," Anh Khoa shared.

Stepping into 12th grade, Khoa chose to change his mindset, considering the exam as an experience rather than a measure of self-worth.

Ba Tran Kim Duyen - To truong chuyen mon To Ngoai ngu Truong THPT chuyen Tran Dai Nghia chia se, ket qua bon hoc sinh cung dat giai Nhat hoc sinh gioi quoc gia mon Tieng Anh nam nay khong phai la thanh cong mang tinh ngau nhien, ma la thanh qua cua mot qua trinh dai duoc xay dung tren nen tang nang luc ca nhan, ky luat hoc tap va su dong hanh chat che giua nha truong, thay co va hoc sinh.

According to Ms. Kim Duyen, due to the specificity of the regular curriculum being thick, the team's rehearsal time is mainly organized on weekends, and many classes take place flexibly in the form of live or online.

The players in the team all have their own personalities, have periods of stress and pressure, but the common point is that they all aim for the same goal and always strive for the team," Ms. Kim Duyen said.