Ministry of Education Announces Support Plan for Universities Contributing to High School Education
Revised Project Details and Selection Methods Reflecting College Admission System Reform
[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] The government will provide approximately 69.8 billion KRW this year to 70 universities that have been recognized for promoting the normalization of high school education through fair admission processes and alleviating the admission burden on students and parents. Universities whose faculty or staff were involved in admission scandals or committed fraudulent admission acts will receive point deductions during evaluations or face significant cuts in project funding.
The Ministry of Education finalized and announced the "2020 Basic Plan for the High School Education Contribution University Support Project," which completely overhauls the project content and university selection method, on the 26th.
The High School Education Contribution University Support Project provides support for two years covering admissions officers' personnel expenses, admission operation and research costs, when universities improve their admission processes to enhance high school education quality and reduce the admission burden on students and parents.
This year, to firmly establish the college entrance system reforms and fairness enhancement measures announced in 2018 and 2019 in the field, the selection evaluation indicators were redesigned into three areas: ▶ Strengthening fairness in college entrance examinations ▶ Simplification of admission procedures and expansion of information disclosure ▶ Strengthening universities' social responsibility.
Accordingly, universities in the metropolitan area wishing to participate in this project must submit a plan to adjust the admission ratio to have 30% of admissions based on the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) by the 2022 academic year (some universities until 2023 with 40%), and regional universities must adjust the ratio of student record-based or CSAT-based admissions to 30% as a participation condition.
To eliminate disparities in admission operation capabilities among universities and promote fair competition, the project types previously divided into Type I and II were also restructured.
Type I abolished the method of grouping by recruitment numbers and simplified it into two groups: metropolitan and regional universities. Type II targets universities that have not received project funding in the past four years (2016?2019) to strengthen the admission capabilities of new universities and expand project outcomes.
Additionally, to enhance transparency in the admission process, pilot programs involving about seven universities will be conducted, including participation of external public evaluators, observation by external personnel during evaluations, and recording and preservation of evaluation processes, to identify and address issues and plan for future expansion.
The Ministry of Education also strengthened sanctions such as project fund reductions and evaluation point deductions for universities involved in organized admission scandals, thereby reinforcing university accountability in admission operations.
In cases where key university officials receive minor disciplinary actions due to admission scandals or improper admission activities are detected, restrictions such as project fund cuts and evaluation point deductions will be applied to increase universities' vigilance against admission fraud.
The Ministry of Education will soon provide detailed information about the 2020 High School Education Contribution University Support Project to universities and plans to finalize the selected universities after preliminary application submissions next month and selection evaluations in April and May.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
