The HCMUS-AtCoder team from the Faculty of Information Technology, VNUHCM–University of Science (HCMUS), secured 32nd place overall and was ranked in the High Honours group at the ICPC World Finals 2025 in Baku, Azerbaijan. This marked the Faculty’s best achievement in twelve appearances at the contest since 2008.

Competing against 139 leading universities from across the world, HCMUS-AtCoder delivered a strong performance. Within the opening four hours of the five-hour contest, the team completed seven out of twelve problems. During the final phase, the members advanced further, solving eight problems in total. This result placed the Vietnamese team among the High Honours group, alongside Carnegie Mellon University, ETH Zurich, KAIST, Kyoto University, University of California Berkeley, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, National University of Singapore, and Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

The path to the World Finals was supported by a series of regional successes: a bronze medal at the ICPC Asia Pacific Championship 2025, a gold medal at ICPC Asia Hanoi 2024 where the team achieved the highest ranking among Vietnamese participants, and a gold medal at ICPC Asia Jakarta 2024. These accomplishments provided the foundation for the team’s confidence in Baku.

HCMUS-AtCoder consisted of three outstanding students — Vũ Quốc Lâm, Võ Khắc Triệu and Lê Nguyễn Hữu An — all enrolled in the Advanced Programme in Computer Science and alumni of VNUHCM-High School for the Gifted. The team was guided by Assoc. Prof. Nguyễn Thanh Hùng and MSc. Lương Vĩ Minh, both experienced ICPC coaches.

Both coaches were also honoured with the prestigious Coaching Award, presented only to mentors who have guided teams to at least five ICPC World Finals. In 2025, just eight coaches worldwide received this distinction.

The achievement in Baku stands as a reward for the perseverance of the students and the commitment of the coaching staff. The result also represents a source of pride for the Faculty of Information Technology and VNUHCM–University of Science, while reaffirming the capacity of Vietnamese students to compete with peers from leading international universities in the field of information technology.