University Campuses Empty Amid Medical School Disruptions Following March Semester Start

Some Universities Postpone Semester Start... Professors Strongly Oppose

As the collective action of doctors opposing the increase in medical school admissions continues into its third week, medical schools nationwide are experiencing disruptions in academic operations due to alliance leave applications and refusals to attend classes and practical training. According to Yonhap News on the 5th, concerns are emerging that normal academic operations will be difficult to restore, with some universities reporting that even professors are participating in 'head-shaving ceremonies.'

According to figures compiled by the Ministry of Education as of 6 p.m. the previous day, 5,401 medical students have officially applied for leave following proper procedures, accounting for 28.7% of the total enrolled medical students nationwide (18,793 as of April last year). Medical students continue their alliance leave in protest against the government's policy to increase medical school admissions. However, the actual number of students who have submitted leave applications is higher. The Ministry of Education excludes applications that do not meet the requirements from the official count.

Seoul National University College of Medicine with Few Crowds
Photo by Yonhap News

Since the 19th, the total number of leave applications and those properly received have been separately counted, and combining the numbers announced since the 28th results in a total of 14,043 applications. Additionally, as of the previous day, eight medical schools have refused to hold classes.

Yonhap News reported that on the morning of the same day, the corridors of the medical school lecture halls, including the Education Building at Seoul National University Medical School's Yeongeon Campus in Daehangno, Seoul, where undergraduate students attend classes, were mostly quiet, and the classrooms were dark with doors closed.

Medical schools typically start their semester earlier than other departments, around mid-February, but many medical schools nationwide have seen collective leave applications or refusals to attend classes and practical training, causing universities to postpone the semester start.

Yonsei University College of Medicine in Seodaemun-gu showed a similar situation. The e-learning center lecture room, where a 'Medical Statistics' class was scheduled from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. that day, was reportedly empty. It was also reported that "Chung-Ang University and Sungkyunkwan University postponed the semester start date to the 11th exclusively for their medical schools, but it is uncertain whether many students will attend classes even next week." At Hanyang University College of Medicine in Seongdong-gu, classes started as planned, but the Medical Academic Information Center in the main building was empty, and the reading room used by fourth-year undergraduates across the hall had even its fluorescent lights turned off.

The situation is similar at regional medical schools. Chosun University College of Medicine started its semester on the 4th, but with students not attending, all third- and fourth-year experimental and practical classes were postponed. Chonnam National University College of Medicine plans to start its semester on the 6th, two weeks later than the original date of the 19th of last month, but since students who applied for leave are unlikely to attend, the semester start may be further delayed.

Professors Continue to Oppose... University Hospital Professors Submit Resignations

On the morning of the 5th, medical school professors held a head-shaving ceremony in front of the Gangwon National University College of Medicine, protesting the university's policy to increase enrollment.
[Photo by Gangwon National University College of Medicine faculty]

As the impact of leave applications continues, there are claims that some schools are strongly pressuring enrolled students to participate in collective actions targeting freshmen. A netizen identifying as a medical student wrote on an online bulletin board, "(Senior students) conducted a named vote to ask about participation in the collective action, and for those who did not participate, the student council individually called them, subtly pressuring them by saying 'it would be better to cooperate for smooth school life.'

Meanwhile, as universities officially requested the government for large-scale increases in admissions, professors also voiced opposition. About ten professors from Kangwon National University College of Medicine held a head-shaving ceremony in front of the medical school on the morning of the 5th, expressing opposition to the unilateral increase policy against the will of faculty and students. Previously, Kangwon National University submitted an application to the Ministry of Education to increase the medical school quota from the current 49 to 140. At Wonkwang University, five professors including the dean of the medical school resigned from their positions.

A second university hospital professor who resigned in protest against the government's policy to expand medical school quotas has also emerged. Professor Bae Dae-hwan of Chungbuk National University Hospital (Cardiology) posted a message titled 'Letter of Resignation' on his social media the previous day. He sharply criticized, "I cannot contain my anger at the Ministry of Health and Welfare's behavior of suspending licenses to prevent interns and residents from resigning, and the thoughtless behavior of university presidents who have not an iota of educational conscience."

Regarding these developments, the Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice urged the government to take strict action against the medical community's collective actions. The coalition held a press conference in front of the Presidential Office in Yongsan, Seoul, stating, "We must break the doctors' 'sense of privilege' that they will not be punished even for illegal actions to correct distorted medical policies," and "The government should strictly respond to the medical community's illegal actions and proceed with expanding medical school quotas."