HANOI, June 29 (Xinhua) -- As students across Vietnam began the national high school graduation exam with literature test on Thursday, many in Vietnam's capital, Hanoi, arrived at exam sites with their parents and entered the venue to the spirited encouragement of volunteers.

Held annually, the exam is both an exam to assess high school learning outcomes and one of important criteria for university admission, becoming a key event in the lives of Vietnamese students.

More than 1.16 million candidates took part in this year's exam, nearly 100,000 more than in 2024 and over 200,000 more than in 2020, according to Vietnam News Agency.

The sharp rise in candidates, combined with limited university admission quotas, has caused many students to experience stress and anxiety.

"It's stressful and challenging. The more candidates there are, the tougher the competition," said Dinh Tran Ngoc Diem, a candidate who dreams of becoming a teacher.

"I'm really under pressure right now and not even sure if I'll pass," said Dinh Xuan Bach, a candidate in Hanoi hoping to get into an economics university.

The pressure is not felt by students alone, as parents also share the stress of exam season.

Hoai Thu from Hanoi said, "If you want a good university, students really have to make every effort. More candidates mean more pressure for both them (students) and us (parents)".

This year, the exam consists of four subjects including mathematics, literature as compulsory, along with two electives selected from a range of options such as foreign language, history, physics, chemistry, biology, geography, economic and legal education, informatics, and technology in one and a half days.

Ahead of the exam season, many candidates have visited Hanoi's Temple of Literature, originally established to honor Confucius and later serving as Vietnam's first national university, to seek calm and wish for good luck.

"The Temple of Literature has long been known as a place to honor generations of scholars for their academic achievements," Nguyen Phuong Linh, a student visiting the temple, told Xinhua three days before the exam.

"Today I came here to pray for luck in the national high school graduation exam," she said.