The East Sea has so dominated recent news that this month, when the topic came up on Vietnam’s college entrance exam, many students said they were ready.

One test taker, Thu Trang from central Thanh Hoa Province, said she really liked the question, which asked candidates to name the Vietnamese cities and provinces that administer the Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) Islands.

She said she filled in her answer “with great enthusiasm.”

That should gratify policymakers who used the exam to assert Vietnam’s sovereignty over the archipelagoes. The answer key, released Tuesday after testing ended, said that Da Nang manages Hoang Sa, while central Khanh Hoa Province manages Truong Sa.

Vu Thi Bac, a teacher in Ho Chi Minh City, said the question helps raise students’ awareness of the country’s sovereignty, but should have gone into further detail.

College hopefuls, meanwhile, were eager to field a test question on a current event that has captured the nation’s attention.

A student in Hanoi said she believed she answered correctly because she frequently learned about Vietnam’s seas and islands.

“Everyone knows that Hoang Sa is managed by Da Nang and Truong Sa by Khanh Hoa,” Tran Thi Thuy Nga said.

Nguyen Van Nam, another test-taker, said he added an analysis of Vietnam’s economic policy on the island chains.

Vietnam uses the national entrance exams to screen students applying for undergraduate degree programs.