The case of Mr. Vuong Tan Viet (aka Venerable Thich Chan Quang) whose name was not on the list of high school graduates but was awarded a bachelor's and doctorate degrees caused a stir in public opinion. So, can those who do not have a high school diploma be awarded a bachelor's and doctorate degrees?

According to the regulations on university and college admissions for preschool education, the subjects and conditions for university admissions are those who have been recognized as graduating from high school in Vietnam or have a foreign diploma recognized as equivalent.

In addition, those who have a secondary vocational diploma in the same field of study as the applicant and have completed the required amount of high school cultural knowledge as prescribed by law are also eligible to apply.

Thus, students who have not completed high school and do not have a high school diploma will not be eligible to apply to universities and colleges.

Those who do not have a high school diploma but are awarded a bachelor's or doctoral degree will be handled according to regulations. Specifically, in Clause 3, Article 20, Circular 08/2021/TT-BGDDT promulgating the regulations on university training stipulates: "Students who use fake records, diplomas, and certificates as admission or graduation conditions will be forced to drop out of school; graduation diplomas, if already granted, will be revoked or canceled."

Regarding doctoral degrees, according to Clause 5, Article 21, Circular 18/2021/TT-BGDDT promulgating regulations on doctoral degree enrollment and training stipulates: “If a doctoral student has been awarded a doctoral degree, the revocation of the degree shall be carried out in accordance with current regulations and in the case where the training process records are confirmed to have serious violations or errors, leading to the degree holder no longer being able to ensure that he/she meets the conditions for admission, recognition of doctoral students and maintains the conditions for quality assurance during the learning and research process at the training institution”.

Regarding the responsibility for revoking and canceling diplomas and certificates, in Article 25, Circular 21/2019/TT-BGDDT Regulations on the management of diplomas and certificates of the national education system, this responsibility belongs to the competent authority that issues diplomas and certificates.

Specifically, high school diplomas are granted by the Director of the Department of Education and Training; university education diplomas are granted by university directors, university principals, academy directors, and directors of scientific research institutes that are authorized to train and grant diplomas at the corresponding level.

In case the competent authority that issues diplomas and certificates has merged, divided, separated, or dissolved, the competent authority that revokes or cancels the diploma or certificate is the authority that is managing the original book that issued the diploma or certificate.

The Minister of Education and Training decides to revoke or cancel diplomas and certificates or requests competent authorities to revoke or cancel diplomas and certificates in other cases.

The Ministry of Education and Training informed about the review of Mr. Vuong Tan Viet's diploma . The representative of the Ministry of Education and Training has just informed about the review of Mr. Vuong Tan Viet's diploma (Venerable Thich Chan Quang). The Ministry has initially verified that the suspicion about the value of this diploma is well-founded.

Regarding the fact that Mr. Vuong Tan Viet (Venerable Thich Chan Quang) is not on the list of high school graduates, Hanoi Law University said that it will carry out procedures according to the regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training on diploma management.