[2025 CSAT] Cracking Down on CSAT-Private Education Cartel... Strengthening Management of Test Makers

Preventing Similar Questions Between CSAT and Private Education
Verification Conducted Including Strengthening Management of Question Setter Pool
'Private Education Relevance' Also Included in Objection Review Criteria

The government will strengthen monitoring and complaint reception for educational companies, as well as enhance management of the CSAT question setters. This measure aims to prevent the creation of similar questions between the CSAT and private education and to eradicate cartels between CSAT question setters and private education.

On the 28th, the Ministry of Education announced the 'Measures to Strengthen the Fairness of CSAT Question Setting,' which centers on these points. The Ministry stated, "This plan was prepared to prevent recurrence of issues confirmed through the recent Board of Audit and Inspection announcement," and added, "The measures will be applied starting from the June mock test for the 2025 CSAT."

The measures consist of ▲systematizing the management of the question setter pool ▲strengthening fairness in selecting question setters ▲systematizing similarity verification during question setting ▲and supplementing the objection review process.

First, the CSAT question setter pool will be expanded, and verification and management will be systematized. With cooperation from related organizations such as education offices and universities, new personnel qualified as question setters will undergo prior verification and be registered in the pool on an ongoing basis. Additionally, monitoring and complaint reception for private education companies will be strengthened, and if cases are detected where question setters expose their participation experience for promotional purposes, they will be excluded from the pool to reinforce management.

Following the September mock test and CSAT last year, private education profit-seekers will be completely excluded through income-related verification during the selection of this year’s CSAT question setters as well. The system will be computerized to randomly select question setters from the verified pool, ensuring fairness in the selection process.

Similarity verification between CSAT questions and private education questions during the question setting process will also be systematized. Previously, the criteria for purchasing materials used for similarity verification were unclear, resulting in some materials such as mock tests published by private education companies after admission being omitted from similarity verification. To improve this, official requests will be made to private education companies to submit market test papers and major private education mock tests, and plans for future publications will also be submitted and officially purchased.

Through this, materials published both before and after admission to the CSAT question setting headquarters will be used as similarity verification materials between CSAT questions and private education questions. The 'CSAT Question Setting Inspection Committee,' composed of active teachers, will also be utilized to check similarity between ongoing CSAT questions and private education company materials.

Furthermore, 'private education relevance' will be added to the criteria for objection review to supplement the objection review process. Previously, objection reviews were conducted only regarding question errors, but starting from the June mock test for the 2025 CSAT, the relevance of questions to private education will also be included as a review criterion. For questions raised for similarity with private education questions, the 'CSAT Evaluation Advisory Committee,' composed of active teachers, will comprehensively consider the similarity between private education questions and CSAT questions, as well as the influence of the private education questions, to advise on whether the fairness of the exam is compromised.

Lee Ju-ho, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, stated, "We will eradicate cartels between CSAT question setters and private education through institutional improvements," and added, "This year as well, we will maintain the principle of 'Fair CSAT,' which secures discrimination power while excluding killer questions not covered in the public education curriculum, to restore trust in the CSAT."