Seoul National University Instructor Gives All Students an F for Major Course over Bizarre Reason

Grade Submission Delayed Twice Due to Overseas Travel and the Flu
Active on Social Media During Grade Entry Delay
Temporary F Grades, but Student Dissatisfaction Remains

An instructor in charge of a major course at Seoul National University failed to meet the grade submission deadline, resulting in all students enrolled in the class receiving an F grade. The instructor explained that the correct grades would be announced soon, but controversy arose as the instructor continued to post regularly on personal social media accounts during the delay in grade entry.

Seoul National University Main Gate. Seoul National University

On January 7, Yonhap News reported that Instructor A, who was responsible for a major course in the College of Social Sciences at Seoul National University for the second semester of 2025, did not submit grades by the deadline, causing all students in the class to receive an F grade.

According to Seoul National University's academic grading regulations, if the grade field is blank or marked as I (Incomplete) by the submission deadline, the grade is automatically processed as an F. The deadline for grade submission was December 26 of the previous year, but Instructor A did not enter the grades by that date, resulting in all 59 students enrolled in the course receiving an F grade.

It was reported that on December 25, Instructor A announced that due to changes in overseas travel plans, grades would be finalized by January 2. However, on January 2, the instructor posted again, stating that it was difficult to meet the deadline due to having contracted the flu.

Nevertheless, it was confirmed that during the delay in grade entry, Instructor A continued to post several times on a personal blog and social media accounts.

In response, one student posted anonymously on the university community platform 'Everytime', stating, "Taking this class caused me mental distress until the very end," and added, "I hope some action will be taken, at least for the sake of future students."

Students expressed their dissatisfaction, saying, "You still haven't graded, but you're active on your blog and Twitter," "How can someone who claims to be ill post on their blog, saying 'I'll postpone entering grades and read a book instead'? There is no sense of responsibility as an instructor," and "At this point, shouldn't this person be prohibited from teaching?"

As the controversy grew, Instructor A reportedly sent an email to students on January 6, stating, "I sincerely apologize," and explained, "Grades are expected to be released either in the afternoon of January 8 or around noon on January 9."