Large-Scale Academic Probation Becomes Reality
Ministry of Education Faces Growing Concerns
Korea University will impose academic probation on 100 medical students who failed to meet the required number of class days. This is the first time a collective academic probation has been issued since the medical-government conflict began in February last year.
According to Korea University on the 11th, the medical school decided to place about 110 third- and fourth-year students who did not meet the minimum attendance requirement set by the school regulations (one-third of the total class days) on academic probation. This accounts for more than half of the students in those grades.
Additionally, since the third- and fourth-year courses are mainly practical training, if a student is placed on probation for the first semester, it becomes difficult to attend classes in the second semester, resulting in a one-year leave of absence. Students on probation will not receive a refund of their tuition fees. Specific notification methods and procedures are expected to be further discussed in a meeting scheduled after the 14th.
Accordingly, about 40 fourth-year and 70 third-year students are expected to be placed on probation this time. If they are placed on probation for the first semester, they will effectively take a one-year break. This is because the curriculum for third- and fourth-year students is primarily practice-oriented.
Other universities are also preparing for large-scale academic probation of medical students. Yonsei University sent probation notices on the 7th to 48 fourth-year students who are refusing to return to classes. The probation candidates will be finalized on the 15th after a promotion review committee meeting chaired by the dean of the medical school.
Medical personnel are coming and going in front of a medical school in Seoul on the 8th, as the Ministry of Education has identified a high class participation rate among third- and fourth-year medical students and announced that it will comprehensively assess the overall situation before announcing the medical school admission quota for the 2026 academic year. Photo by Yonhap News
Many medical schools, including Ajou University and Chonnam National University, also plan to finalize probation candidates for fourth-year students next week.
As large-scale probation becomes a reality, the Ministry of Education’s concerns are deepening. Earlier, the Ministry stated, "If all medical students return by the end of March, the number of medical school admissions for the 2026 academic year will revert to the pre-increase figure of 3,058." The Ministry’s position is that a majority of medical students must participate normally in classes to be considered as having returned, but many students are still only registered without attending classes.
Meanwhile, some universities are experiencing acts that obstruct medical students who wish to return to classes. Recently, medical students at Kyung Hee University conducted a vote on continuing their protest and changed their protest strategy from withholding course registration to refusing course registration.
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