Ministry of Education Reissues Increase Application Notice to Medical Schools Nationwide... Upholds 'Application by 4th' Rule

"Apply by the 4th" vs "Please Refrain from Applying"

The Ministry of Education has sent another official letter to 40 universities nationwide that operate medical schools, requesting them to apply for the 2025 academic year medical school student quotas by the previously announced deadline of March 4.

According to the education sector on the 3rd, the Ministry of Education sent an official letter on the 29th of last month to 40 universities operating medical schools, stating that if they wish to adjust the medical school student quotas for the 2025 academic year, they must submit the application form by the 4th of this month.

Earlier, on the 22nd of last month, the Ministry of Education sent the same official letter to the 40 universities and began the allocation process for the additional 2,000 students.

In response, the Korea Association of Medical Colleges and Medical Schools (KAMC), composed of deans of medical schools and medical graduate schools, requested the Ministry of Education and each university to postpone the application for quota increases. The Korean Medical Association's Emergency Committee also appealed to university presidents, asking them to "refrain from applying for the sake of a greater cause." The National Association of Medical School Professors also argued that university presidents should not apply for medical school quotas by the 4th.

However, the Ministry of Education sent another official letter to each university within a week, maintaining the principle of conducting the demand survey according to the previously announced schedule.

Amid the ongoing strong confrontation between the government and the medical community over the increase in medical school admissions, medical staff are moving at a large hospital in Seoul on the 29th, the government's deadline for residents who left hospitals to return. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

The Ministry of Education has emphasized its plan to accept quota applications by the 4th of this month and its principle to maintain the increase of more than 2,000 students. On the 26th, Park Sung-min, Director of Planning and Coordination at the Ministry of Education, stated at a regular briefing, "The government will not change the plan to increase medical school quotas by 2,000 students or to accept quota applications by March 4."

President Yoon Suk-yeol also emphasized at the Central-Local Cooperation Meeting held at the Blue House State Guest House on the 27th of last month that "the increase of 2,000 medical school quotas is a minimum essential measure."

The Ministry of Education expects that university presidents want the increase, so the demand will not decrease compared to before. However, amid strong opposition from the medical community regarding the increase, there is a possibility of adjusting the scale of the increase by reflecting the opinions of professors, students, and others. A president of a national university in a provincial area said, "The number of increases needs to be reorganized again," adding, "It is not decided by one person; opinions are gathered from the academic affairs office, deans, hospital directors, etc., and the number approved at the final decision meeting of the deans will be the final variable."

Medical students' collective actions are also continuing. As of 6 p.m. on the 28th of last month, the cumulative number of medical students nationwide who submitted leave of absence applications in protest against the government's policy to increase medical school quotas reached 13,698. This corresponds to about 72.9% of the 18,793 medical students enrolled nationwide as of April last year.