Just finished the exam in the lecture hall of the Diplomatic Academy, Nguyen Thanh Binh opened his phone and suddenly received dozens of congratulatory messages. The male student at that time knew he had become the valedictorian of the C00 combination nationwide in the 2026 high school graduation exam.
Nguyen Thanh Binh (born in 2006) is currently a second-year student majoring in International Commercial Law, Diplomatic Academy of Foreign Affairs. As a freelance candidate taking the high school graduation exam for the second time, Binh achieved a total score of 28.75 in the C00 combination, including 9.25 points in Literature, 9.5 points in History and 10 points in Geography.
I just finished a major exam at school. Opening my phone, I saw many messages from family, friends, and teachers congratulating me. At that time, I was really surprised because I didn't think I would be the valedictorian" - Binh shared.
Retake the exam to pursue another dream
The special thing is that Thanh Binh did not take the exam for the first university entrance exam but to carry out his plan to study for a second degree.
The male student said he wanted to register for the Geography Pedagogy major of Hanoi National University of Education. If admitted, Binh will consider arranging his study schedule to pursue two programs in parallel.
I only share this plan with my family because I am also worried that the exam results will not be as expected. Fortunately, my parents always support and create conditions for me to pursue what I love" - Binh said.
During the exam preparation process, the male student both studied at university and prepared for the high school graduation exam. Most of the study time takes place in the evening or weekend.
Arranging time is quite hard, but I mainly study on my own, study online and take advantage of every possible time" - Binh said.
According to Binh, this year's exam program has many changes compared to when she was in high school, but this is not too big an obstacle.
My Geography background is quite good, so I am confident with this subject. I used to really like studying history, so even if the program is innovated, the content still has many similarities. I study for the exam quite comfortably, without putting pressure to become a valedictorian. The only goal is to get enough points to apply for the Geography Pedagogy major of Hanoi National University of Education" - Binh shared.
From the first prize of national excellent student to excellent student
Few people know that, in the high school graduation exam two years ago, despite having strengths in social sciences and having won the national excellent student award in Geography, Thanh Binh chose to take the natural science combined exam. At that time, the male student achieved a total of 53.25 points in six subjects.
As a former student of Nguyen Du Specialized High School - Dak Lak, Thanh Binh has an impressive academic record. In 11th grade, he won the third prize in the national excellent student competition in Geography, a Gold Medal and the title of runner-up at the traditional 30/4 Olympic exam.
In 12th grade, the male student continued to excellently win the first prize of the national excellent student in Geography.
With this achievement, Binh was directly admitted to the Diplomatic Academy, studying International Commercial Law.
Not only outstanding at the high school level, Binh continues to maintain excellent academic achievements at university. The male student has received scholarships to encourage study and training in all three previous semesters, in which the most recent semester ranked first in the whole industry.
For Thanh Binh, the title of valedictorian C00 nationwide was not in the initial plan. What she aimed for was simply to have more opportunities to pursue her love for Geography and her teaching dream.
