Lee Ju-ho "Will Make a Decision as Soon as Possible"
Plan to Carry Over Regular Admissions is "Irrational"
"No Adjustment to Medical School Quotas for 2025 Academic Year"
Yonsei University has completely suspended the exam amid controversy over the leakage of essay test questions, and the Ministry of Education stated that it is "consulting with (Yonsei University) to minimize the damage to examinees."
Kim Hong-sun, deputy spokesperson of the Ministry of Education, said at a regular briefing on the 25th in response to a question about whether the Ministry has a Plan B, "I understand that Yonsei University is exploring various options," and made this statement.
According to the education sector on the same day, some natural science essay test takers at Yonsei University reportedly opened a KakaoTalk open chat room called 'Opposition to Retest' on the 21st, immediately after Yonsei University's objection was dismissed.
On the morning of the same day, Lee Ju-ho, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, appeared on CBS's radio program 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and responded to related questions by saying, "First, universities must respond with autonomy and responsibility, but as you pointed out, this is a highly impactful admission issue, so the Ministry of Education is also continuing consultations," and pledged to make a decision as soon as possible.
Regarding the possibility of 'transferring to regular admissions,' he explained, "You mentioned three alternatives, but among them, the part the Ministry of Education reviewed is transferring the essay screening to regular admissions, which is essentially taking away one of the six chances students have to apply early admissions," and added, "We consider that part unreasonable."
Meanwhile, when asked about the possibility of adjusting the medical school admission quota for the 2025 academic year, the Deputy Prime Minister answered, "There is none." He said, "Adjusting (the medical school admission quota) now would greatly undermine the stability of admissions." He also added, "(Regarding adjustments related to the increase in medical school admissions for the 2025 academic year) we continue to explain this in the ruling and opposition party parliamentary consultative body. The government maintains a principle of open communication, but we must say no when something is truly impossible."
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