This Year's CSAT Korean and Math Type A Were Difficult... Math Type B and English Relatively Easy

42,1034 Examinees This Year
Graduates and Others Account for 29.9%

Highest Standard Score in Korean Section 144 Points
Highest Discrimination...Math Types Ga and Na 137 Points

English Section 1st Grade Rate 12.66%

On the 3rd, the day of the 2021 College Scholastic Ability Test, a test taker who finished the exam is leaving the testing site set up at Deokseong Girls' High School in Jongno-gu, Seoul, together with their mother who came to pick them up. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-joo] This year's College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) was found to be more difficult in the Korean language and Mathematics Type A sections compared to last year, while Mathematics Type B and English were easier.

The Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation announced the scoring results of the 2021 CSAT held on December 3rd on the 22nd. This year, the number of test takers was 421,034, with 295,116 current students and 125,918 graduates and others (including GED holders), accounting for 29.9%. Individual scores will be distributed on the 23rd.

Looking at the highest standard scores by section, the Korean language section scored 144 points, Mathematics Type A scored 137 points, and Mathematics Type B scored 137 points. The standard score indicates how much a test taker's raw score deviates from the average score. If the test is difficult and the average is low, the highest standard score rises; if the test is easy and the average is high, the highest standard score decreases.

For the 2020 academic year, the highest standard scores by section were 140 points for Korean, 134 points for Mathematics Type A, and 149 points for Mathematics Type B. Compared to last year, this year’s Korean and Mathematics Type A sections were more difficult, while Mathematics Type B was relatively easier. For English, which is graded on an absolute scale, the percentage of students achieving the top grade was 12.66%. This is the highest since the introduction of absolute grading, significantly increasing from last year’s 7.43%.

The cutoff scores for the top grade by section are 131 points for Korean, 130 points for Mathematics Type A, and 131 points for Mathematics Type B. In the social studies inquiry section, scores range from 63 to 67 points depending on the subject, and in the science inquiry section, from 62 to 68 points. The vocational inquiry section ranges between 65 and 70 points, while the second foreign language and Chinese characters section ranges from 65 to 81 points.