According to the Hanoi Education and Training Department, 108,700 students will enter the sixth grade, an increase of 22,000 compared with the last year. The competition to enter the schools, therefore, has become stiff.

The Hanoi-Amsterdam High School for the Gifted, believed to be the best high school in Hanoi, plans to enroll 200 students, while it has received 4,156 applications. Meanwhile, 2,599 students have registered to attend the entrance exams to the Nguyen Tat Thanh Secondary School, 200 more students over 2013, and 2,020 will attend the exam to the Cau Giay Secondary School.

Hanoians complained that the doors to star secondary schools for their children are getting narrower, while only very excellent students can enroll in the schools.

The main reason behind this, according to Cuong, is the big difference in the education quality of schools. The prestigious schools are the ones which can offer better learning and teaching conditions.  In the schools, students can learn in classes with 20-35 students each. In other schools, there are 50-60 students in every class.