2024 College Admissions, Focus on Inquiry Subjects...Emerging as Key Points for Regular Admissions

Decline in Raw Scores for Top Grade in Social Studies
Difficulty Levels in Inquiry Areas Continue to Rise
Simple Memorization and Mechanical Problem Solving Are Not Enough

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] In the 2023 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), the ‘Inquiry Area’ acted as a variable in regular admission applications, with the social studies inquiry showing increased discrimination power. It is highly likely that securing discrimination power through the inquiry area will be necessary again in this year’s CSAT.

On the 9th, the day of distribution for the 2023 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) score reports, a high school senior is looking at their CSAT score report at Gyeongbok High School in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

According to Etoos Education Evaluation Research Institute on the 25th, the difficulty level of social studies inquiry in this CSAT was analyzed to be as high as that of Korean language and mathematics. In fact, the percentage of perfect scorers in subjects such as Economics, Life and Ethics, Ethics and Thought, Politics and Law, and Society and Culture was less than 1%.

In the 2022 CSAT, among the nine social studies inquiry subjects, six had a top grade cutoff at a perfect score of 50 points, and even those who scored full marks in raw scores received percentile scores of 97 in five subjects including World Geography. Missing even one question caused a significant drop in percentile scores, making regular admission applications very challenging.

On the other hand, in the 2023 CSAT, the proportion of perfect scorers dropped sharply in most subjects. East Asian History was the only subject with a top grade cutoff at a perfect score, and there was no occurrence of grade or percentile drops by one or two questions, nor disappearance of mid-percentiles, showing a clustered structure.

In particular, for Society and Culture, scores from perfect to 47 points corresponded to a percentile of 100, while 46 and 45 points corresponded to a percentile of 99, which is an unusual case in the social studies inquiry area. Accordingly, unlike in 2022, the advantage for science inquiry test takers applying to humanities fields in regular admissions decreased, likely causing significant psychological burden.

In science inquiry, compared to the previous year, the perceived difficulty difference in Chemistry I was large. Although the percentage of perfect scorers did not differ much, the cutoff for the second grade dropped by 5 points compared to the previous year.

For Life Science I, the grade cutoff scores for grades 1, 2, and 3 matched those of the previous year. The previously very difficult Physics I and relatively easier Chemistry I swapped difficulty levels, but overall, the difficulty level was maintained as in the previous year.

Meanwhile, Seoul National University will abolish the mandatory requirement to take Science Inquiry II from the 2024 academic year and allow ‘I+I combinations’ for applications, while awarding a 3% additional score to those selecting II subjects. Some departments require mandatory completion of either Physics or Chemistry, so top-tier applicants aiming for Seoul National University must carefully check the admission guidelines of their intended departments.

The Etoos Education Evaluation Research Institute views that, based on recent trends, the inquiry area’s scores will be greatly influenced by a solid academic foundation built through thorough preparation of school records. Additionally, with the increase in repeat test takers (‘N-su students’), competition at the top ranks in the inquiry area is expected to intensify further.

The institute advised that since the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation, which creates the CSAT, is raising the overall difficulty level reflecting these points, focusing solely on killer questions is not advisable. It is much more important to practice solving easy or basic questions quickly.

Kim Byung-jin, head of the Etoos Education Evaluation Research Institute, emphasized, “This cannot be solved by simple memorization or mechanical problem-solving; repeated training to carefully examine questions and apply concepts in one’s mind to the problems is necessary. Especially since a 1-point difference in raw scores can create a 5 to 6 point or more difference in percentile scores, it is crucial to prepare for the CSAT with a thorough mindset not to miss even a single point.”