CSAT Held Throughout Korea 

What was unusual about this year's test-takers? What was the reason?

The College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), also known as suneung, is South Korea’s exam for college entrance. The scores from the difficult test largely determine which university the students will be able to attend. 

This year’s CSAT was administered at 1,282 schools nationwide on November 14th, and a total of 522,670 students took the exam. Surprisingly, more than one-third of this year’s applicants were retaking the test, which is the highest since 2003. 

Since early this year, the government has been pushing to accept more students to the nation’s medical schools. Education experts say that the high number of multiple test-takers can be attributed to this policy change.

According to experts, the difficulty level of this year’s CSAT was moderate overall and slightly easier compared to the previous year. The government institute responsible for making the CSAT said that the questions were based on content taught in the public education curriculum. 

The Korean language section was judged by experts to be easier than last year’s CSAT, and six passages were directly related to topics covered in EBS online lectures. A few of the questions in the mathematics section were time-consuming, but overall, the section was also considered less challenging than in 2023. 

The same was said for the English section of this year’s exam. As a result, experts say that students’ scores in the sciences and social studies could play a decisive factor in college admissions. 

On the weekend following the big test day, many students took an essay exam administered by the university of their choice. When it was over, they relaxed and waited for their scores from the CSAT to be made available on December 6th. 

For Discussion: What would you do on the days before the CSAT?  

▪ Talk!! Talk!!

1. What do you think makes the CSAT such an important event in Korea?

2. How do you feel about the level of pressure students face when preparing for the CSAT?

3. Do you believe the CSAT is a fair way to determine college admissions? Why or why not?