Jongno Academy Estimates About 178,000 Repeat Examinees
Increase Expected in Top University Repeat Examinees Enrollment
There is a prospect that the number of 'repeat test-takers' (N-su students) could reach the highest level in 21 years in the 2025 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) to be held on November 14, due to the expansion of medical school admission quotas.
On the 25th, Jongno Academy estimated the ratio of current students and N-su students based on the CSAT and mock exam registration patterns so far, predicting that the number of N-su students for the 2025 CSAT will be between 177,849 and 178,632. This figure is similar to or slightly higher than the number of N-su students in the 2024 CSAT held last year (177,942).
The number of current students taking the 2025 CSAT is estimated to be 335,400, representing a 5.1% increase in third-year high school students compared to the previous year. The proportion of N-su students among CSAT registrants is estimated to slightly decrease to 34.7?34.8%, down from 35.3% the previous year.
Although the proportion of third-year high school students among CSAT test-takers has increased and the proportion of N-su students has decreased, the total number of test-takers has risen. Therefore, the number of N-su students in the 2025 CSAT is likely to exceed last year's 177,942, which was the highest in 20 years since the 2004 CSAT (198,025). The total number of CSAT registrants, combining current students and N-su students, is expected to be in the early 510,000s, up from 504,588 last year.
Jongno Academy anticipates a large influx of top-tier N-su students as the medical school admission quotas are significantly expanded starting from the 2025 academic year.
Lim Seong-ho, CEO of Jongno Academy, said, "The key variable for the 2025 CSAT is how many top-tier N-su students enter. Since N-su students often study independently, many do not even take the September mock exam. We will only be able to judge how many top-tier students participate when the actual CSAT takes place."
On the 6th, 100 days before the 2025 College Scholastic Ability Test, examinees are attending lectures at the Jongno Academy Gangbuk Main Branch in Mapo-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@
With the expansion of medical school quotas, changes are expected in the cutoff scores for admission.
In the 2024 academic year, the minimum average percentile score for Korean, Math, and Inquiry (KMI) for admission to 39 medical schools nationwide through regular admissions was 95.33 points. Among the 111 departments in the natural sciences at Seoul National University, Yonsei University, and Korea University in the same year’s regular admissions, 46 departments (41.4% of all departments) had a KMI average percentile score of 95.33 or higher. For the 2025 academic year regular admissions, due to the expansion of medical school quotas, the minimum cutoff score for medical schools is expected to drop by 1.33 points from 95.33 last year to 94.0. In this case, 90 out of 111 departments (81.1% of all departments) in the natural sciences at Seoul National University, Yonsei University, and Korea University would have scores that qualify students to apply to medical schools. In other words, students who scored high enough to be admitted to the science and engineering departments at these universities last year would be eligible for medical school admission this year. Consequently, the number of N-su students enrolled in top-tier universities attempting to enter medical schools is expected to increase.
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