You Can Get Into Seoul National University Medical School with One Wrong Answer on the CSAT... Two Perfect Scorers Only at Sehwa High School

Two Perfect Scorers in CSAT from Seoul Sehwa High School
"For Medical Schools in the Capital Area, 2-3 Mistakes Are Allowed for Admission"

With the number of perfect scorers on the 2025 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) expected to be around 10, it has been reported that two of them came from a single high school in Seoul.

According to Yonhap News on the 27th, preliminary scoring results of the CSAT revealed that A, a third-year student at Sehwa High School in Seocho-gu, Seoul, and B, a graduate of the same school, each achieved a perfect score.

A has already applied for early admission to programs such as the pre-medical departments at Korea University and Sungkyunkwan University and is awaiting the results. B is known to be a current student at the College of Engineering at Korea University.

This year’s CSAT was somewhat easier than last year’s, leading to a surge in the number of perfect scorers and high scorers who missed only one or two questions. In particular, it is predicted that the number of perfect scorers will increase sharply to around 10, compared to just one last year.

Nam Yungon, head of the admissions strategy research center at MegaStudy, said, "This year’s perfect scorers include four current students and four repeat test-takers, but B, the Sehwa High School graduate, is not included," adding, "If the preliminary scoring results are accurate, there are at least nine perfect scorers."

On the afternoon of the 14th, when the 2025 College Scholastic Ability Test was held, examinees who finished the exam were leaving the testing site at Gyeongbok High School in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

The Seoul Secondary School Guidance Research Association predicted that the cutoff score for admission to the pre-medical departments at Seoul National University and Yonsei University would be 297 points out of 300 based on preliminary CSAT raw scores. This means that for Seoul National University and Yonsei University medical schools, missing at most one question would still place a student within the admission range. For the pre-medical departments at Korea University, Sungkyunkwan University, Ulsan University, and Catholic University, the cutoff was predicted to be 296 points, while medical schools in the metropolitan area were expected to have a cutoff of 293 points.

Jang Jihwan, a teacher at the Seoul Secondary School Guidance Research Association, said, "Since this year’s CSAT was somewhat easier than last year’s, it is estimated that students need to miss two to three questions to be within the admission range for metropolitan medical schools." He added, "For Seoul National University’s medical school, the choice of subjects is crucial. Students who choose two subjects or select earth science or biology instead of physics or chemistry in one subject are expected to have an advantage in standardized scores."

Jung Changwook, head of the Career and Admissions Department at Sehwa High School, also said, "Last year, admission to medical schools in Seoul was possible if students missed four to five questions in total, but this year it has decreased to two to three," adding, "The competition among top-tier students will become more intense."

Choi Joong-cheol, the chief examiner for the 2025 College Scholastic Ability Test, is explaining the test creation principles and directions at the Ministry of Education briefing room in the Government Sejong Complex on the morning of the 14th. Photo by Yonhap News

Meanwhile, unlike last year’s CSAT, which was considered a 'difficult CSAT,' this year’s exam was analyzed to be somewhat easier. The difficulty level of this year’s CSAT was assessed to be similar to or slightly more difficult than the September mock exam.

Choi Joongcheol, chair of the 2025 CSAT question committee and professor at Dongguk University, explained at a briefing held at the Government Complex Sejong on the 14th, "We focused on core and basic content from the curriculum to help normalize high school education," adding, "Even if the core and basic content had been tested before, we changed the form, occurrence, and approach of the questions."

He further explained, "In areas with elective subjects, we ensured a balance in difficulty across subjects to minimize any advantages or disadvantages based on subject choice."

Regarding each subject area, he said that Korean and English utilized a variety of passages and materials within the scope of the curriculum, while mathematics, inquiry subjects, and second foreign languages/Chinese characters aimed for an evaluation centered on thinking skills based on the characteristics of each individual subject.