Academic grading in Vietnam

The Vietnamese grading system is an academic grading system utilized in Vietnam. It is based on a 0 to 10-point scale, similar to the US 1.0-4.0 scale.

Typically when an American educational institution requests a grade-point average (GPA) calculated on the 4 point scale, the student will be expected to do a direct mathematical conversion, so 10 becomes 4.0, 7.5 becomes 3.0, etc. This makes sense from a practical standpoint. In reality, however, it is completely inaccurate.

In the Vietnamese system, a score of ten is rarely given. In contrast, a 4.0 in a U.S. classroom is not unusual, nor is someone with a 4.0 GPA overall. According to the Research Center for Vocational, Technical and Higher Education under the Vietnamese Ministry of Education, someone with a 7.5 GPA will probably be in the top 10-15% of his or her class.

The practice of most Vietnamese colleges is not to provide official transcripts to other universities on behalf of their students. Students can request a signed and stamped original transcript from their school, and then have copies certified with a red stamp at a government office. Translation services are also available at such offices.