We are thrilled to announce that a record three students from the BIS HCMC Class of 2025 have received offers from the University of Oxford, ranked number 3 in the world, and the University of Cambridge, ranked number 5 in the world. A huge congratulations to Quynh An, YeongSeo (Judy) and JaeYeon on their extraordinary achievement that sets a new benchmark for BIS students.
Whilst it is still early in the season in terms of receiving university offers from the UK, USA and across the world, we already have many successes to celebrate including our three remarkable Year 13 students obtaining offers from Oxbridge!
With international students making up just 20% of undergraduates at these two prestigious institutions, gaining a place at Oxbridge is no easy feat. This year, Quynh An, YeongSeo (Judy), and JaeYeon worked extremely hard with utmost dedication and defied the odds to earn their places at the UK’s most competitive universities. To gain their offers they went through a rigorous application process including submitting detailed personal statements, admissions tests and 2-3 interviews each. All supported by our world class teachers and outstanding College and University Guidance (CUG) Department.
What degrees will they study?
As well as receiving offers for Oxbridge they have also received offers so far from Durham University, London School of Economics and Political Science, The University of Manchester, and The University of Warwick.
Hearing from the students themselves
We spoke with Quynh An, YeongSeo (Judy) and JaeYeon today as they shared their delight and pride at gaining offers at these universities, along with their gratitude for the support of their teachers and College and University Guidance (CUG) team in supporting them along the way. They all joined BIS HCMC at different times during their educational journeys, from pre nursery, Year 5 and Year 10 highlighting the value that a BIS HCMC education can have on students at varying points in their education.
They also highlighted how important their International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSEs) were in preparing them for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) in sixth form. They all were unanimous in that their IGCSEs gave them much of the content and context they needed to continue to study their chosen subjects successfully. This is why we at BIS HCMC choose a curriculum that is able to bring out the full potential in our students to give them the skills, knowledge and experience to gain access to some of the top universities and instituitions in the world.
Quynh An has been with us throughout all of her education from Foundation Stage 1. She expressed that “BIS HCMC has really helped shape me as a person and provided me with countless opportunities for study in and beyond the classroom including being a student ambassador at the most recent Nord Anglia Education Student Unicef Summit in Houston, Texas in June 2024. This helped me to enrich my leadership skills and learn more about advocacy and how we have the power to influence decisions on both a small and large scale in the future.”
Jaeyeon, who has been with us since Year 5, described how excited she was to be studying pure physics at Oxford, “I’m so excited as this is a subject I’ve enjoyed through IGCSEs and now, the IBDP. With BIS I’ve been able to extend my skills and knowledge through co-curricular activities and the support of the entire physics department. BIS HCMC has also helped me become a well-rounded person as I have had the opportunity to take on a position as Model United Nations (MUN) Secretary General, leading the team, that also helped demonstrate my commitment to study outside of the IBDP, improving my teamwork, negotiating and leadership skills.”
YeongSeo (Judy) who joined us in Year 10 for the start of IGCSEs is excited to be offered a course studying general engineering at the University of Cambridge. “This unique degree will help keep my future career pathways open in different fields of engineering. The application process was challenging but with the support of my teachers who helped me prepare with a series of mock interviews, I’m extremely proud to be offered this place. BIS HCMC not only supported me in my academic endeavours but helped me explore my passions and while studying I have been able to lead a co-curricular club on environmental issues called ‘Club Cure’.”
Mr. Paul Rispin, Senior University and College Guidance Counsellor, and Ms Sara Morgan, University and College Guidance counsellor were full of praise for our students:
"This really is an unprecedented Oxbridge success, I believe, for any school in Vietnam. Most schools would be delighted with one offer, but to have three in one year is tremendous. All three students fully deserve their places. They were meticulously prepared and assisted brilliantly by their teachers, through the academic rigour provided within the IB Diploma but also by encouraging them to dive into their subject beyond the scope of the diploma, and also in preparing students for the Oxbridge entry tests and interviews."
Impressive UK, USA & Global Offers So Far
These achievements come as BIS students begin to secure outstanding offers from top universities around the world and these numbers will only continue to rise as more decisions will be made over the coming weeks.
While the UK university application season is still ongoing, BIS students have already received 90 offers from 105 UK university decisions—an 86% success rate. More than half of these offers (58%) are from Russell Group universities, including:
Beyond the UK, our students have already secured 57 offers from 70 USA applications (81%), including prestigious institutions such as:
In Canada, students have received offers from The University of Toronto, The University of British Columbia, and many other institutions, while in Australia, early offers have come from The University of Sydney, The University of Melbourne, and Monash University. Additionally, two students have already secured early-round offers from The University of Hong Kong.
With more application decisions expected over the coming months—including from other Ivy League universities in the USA, Singaporean and Korean institutions—2025 is shaping up to be another remarkable year for our BIS HCMC students.
Stay tuned for more updates as our students continue to unlock a world of possibilities!
We are incredibly proud of our Year 11 class of 2024, for their impressive IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) results. This incredible cohort of 155 students, our largest IGCSE class in the history of the school, have significantly surpassed UK and international averages and were awarded 97% of all grades at A*-C. An incredible 62% of all grades awarded were at A*-A.
