"Liberal Arts Invasion" Spreads to Colleges of Education... 56% of Regular Admits Are Science-Track Students

Different Standardized Scores Despite Same Raw Scores
Science-Track Students Gain Advantage by Choosing "Calculus" over "Probability and Statistics"
Science-Track Students' Invasion of Liberal Arts Expands to Mid-Tier Colleges
"As the Integrated CSAT Continues, the Trend Will Persist Next Year"

This year, more than half of the students admitted through the regular admissions process to the ten national colleges of education and elementary education departments nationwide were science-track students who chose either "Calculus" or "Geometry" as their mathematics elective. As the integrated College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) system continues to create advantages and disadvantages in standardized scores depending on the mathematics elective, the phenomenon of "liberal arts invasion"?science students applying to traditionally liberal arts-oriented elementary teacher training institutions?has become more pronounced.

According to Jongno Academy on June 13, among those admitted through the regular admissions process to ten elementary teacher training institutions nationwide (nine colleges of education and Ewha Womans University's Department of Elementary Education), 56.0% selected mathematics electives considered science-track subjects, namely "Calculus" or "Geometry."

In particular, 93.9% of students admitted to the Korea National University of Education's elementary education program through the regular admissions process chose science-track mathematics subjects. At Gyeongin National University of Education (70.8%), Daegu National University of Education (67.0%), and Ewha Womans University's Department of Elementary Education (62.0%), a significant majority of admitted students were also science-track, indicating that regular admissions at these institutions have shifted to a science-focused selection process.

On the morning of the 6th, the day of distribution for the 2025 College Scholastic Ability Test score reports, students at Dongseong High School in Hyehwa-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, are consulting with their homeroom teacher while looking at the university entrance reference sheet after receiving their score reports. Photo by Joint Press Corps

Analysts attribute this trend to the structure of the integrated CSAT, in which the same raw score can yield different standardized scores depending on the mathematics elective chosen.

Under the integrated CSAT system introduced in 2022, standardized scores vary due to differences in exam difficulty and the ability levels of the test-taking groups. Mathematics electives are divided into "Calculus," "Geometry," and "Probability and Statistics." Of these, "Calculus" and "Geometry"?mainly chosen by science-track students?yield higher standardized scores than "Probability and Statistics," which is typically chosen by liberal arts students. In the 2025 academic year, students who chose Calculus or Geometry received standardized scores five points higher than those who took Probability and Statistics, even when their raw scores were the same.

As science-track students gain an advantage in competition with liberal arts students, there appears to be an increasing number of cases where science-track students apply to and are admitted to top-tier liberal arts colleges and departments.

Lim Seongho, CEO of Jongno Academy, stated, "A notable feature is that the liberal arts invasion by science-track students is expanding not only to top-tier but also to mid-tier universities and departments," adding, "As the integrated CSAT continues in the 2026 and 2027 academic years, the trend of science-track students entering colleges of education and liberal arts departments is likely to persist."