"If Delayed Further, Normal Education Cannot Be Maintained"
The Ministry of Education and the association of medical school deans have made it clear that medical students who do not return to classes by midnight on April 30, the deadline for academic probation, will be subject to probation in accordance with school regulations.
The Ministry of Education and the Korean Association of Medical Colleges and Graduate Schools of Medicine (KAMC), a collective body of medical school deans, held an emergency meeting at Seoul National University Dental Hospital on April 30 and agreed on this academic policy regarding students who have refused to attend classes.
Kim Hongsoon, Director of Medical Education Support at the Ministry of Education, met with reporters after the meeting and said, "After midnight tonight, students who have not returned to class will lose the opportunity to return to school this year," adding, "The Ministry hopes that as many students as possible will return by tonight." He also stated, "Confirming probation today does not mean we are telling students not to come back," explaining, "If we delay further, normal education cannot be maintained."
He also emphasized that it would be difficult to rescue students placed on probation through measures such as academic flexibility. Director Kim explained, "Once the administrative procedure of probation is finalized, even if academic flexibility is applied, students cannot return. Their status will already have been resolved," and added, "Academic flexibility cannot resolve the issue of probation."
He explained that, in order for a student to be considered as having returned to class today, there must be actual actions such as class attendance. Director Kim said, "Simply expressing an intention to return is not enough. There must be various actions that can prove the intention to return," and added, "Some schools have online classes available, so students should log in and attend lectures today, or actually attend classes tomorrow or the day after."
Lee Jongtae, Chairman of the Medical School Association, said, "We have asked the deans to keep the doors open until midnight tonight so that as many students as possible can return," and added, "I hope students make wise decisions, return quickly, and that education can return to normal."
Chairman Lee continued, "It seems students are talking about the possibility of reversing probation through the Academic Evaluation Committee, but the committee is not a body that reverses F grade decisions," and explained, "It is merely an administrative procedure, and no one can reverse the confirmation of an F grade."
If a large number of medical students are placed on probation this year, next year there will be a "tripling" in which the classes of 2024, 2025, and 2026 all overlap in the first year of medical school. The Ministry of Education and the Medical School Association reportedly discussed as a countermeasure the policy of granting "priority in course registration for new students" through changes in school regulations, which some universities are pursuing.
Regarding this, Director Kim said, "Limiting course registration for certain classes in the event of tripling is not meant to penalize students, but rather because the educational environment cannot accommodate them," and explained, "If a place that used to teach 100 students suddenly has 320 or 350 students, it is difficult to accommodate them all." Chairman Lee added, "Jeonbuk National University and Dong-A University have established regulations limiting the number of students in classes, and this was also discussed today," and said, "Each school will establish its own countermeasures, including restrictions on course registration and other regulatory adjustments."
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