Nguyễn Khoa Vũ đến từ Việt Nam: từ «chỉ Anh hoặc Mỹ» đến Thanh Hoa sau một lần thăm trường

A decision made on campus, not online

Vu originally refused anything other than the United Kingdom or the United States — reportedly telling his parents it was either those or he stayed at home. What changed his mind was travelling to Beijing in August 2025 for his older sister's enrolment ceremony at Tsinghua; she had been admitted on a scholarship the previous year.

On the visit he saw the classrooms, the swimming pool and sports facilities, and a large and active community of Vietnamese students. His own description of the moment is that everything felt right and he recognised it as the environment he wanted. His sister's path is what put Tsinghua in front of him in the first place.

What the application actually contained

The file was conventional in shape and strong in substance: school transcripts with an average above 9 out of 10, IELTS 7.5, HSK 6, a CSCA result, recommendation letters, a personal essay and a self-introduction video.

He applied to study economics, citing his mother's business background as the influence, and used the personal essay to explain giving up a serious basketball ambition — arguing that he wanted to prove he could excel in another field.

The progression from HSK 4 to HSK 6 in six months is the detail a lecturer at his school singled out as evidence of determination. It is also the clearest illustration on this site of how quickly a motivated applicant can move on the language requirement.

The interview

Tsinghua interviewed him for fifteen minutes with three professors. The questions ranged across his background and plans, and he was asked to solve mathematics problems on the spot rather than to discuss mathematics in the abstract.

That format — short, technical, and conducted by faculty rather than admissions staff — is worth noting for anyone preparing for a top-tier Chinese university interview. The account also confirms that CSCA results and language certificates are checked rather than taken on trust.

The outcome

He accepted a half-tuition scholarship at Tsinghua and abandoned the UK and US applications. Three factors are cited in the account: the funding, his sister's example, and the campus itself.

The pattern worth extracting is that a family connection to a Chinese university is one of the most effective ways an applicant discovers the option in the first place — his view of China changed after one week on campus, not after reading a website.