Human Rights Commission: "Restricting University Special Admissions by Disability Type Is Discrimination"

Complaint over Rejection of Student with Severe Autism Triggers Ruling
Commission Recommends 13 Universities to Correct Restrictions on Disability Types

The National Human Rights Commission has determined that the practice of restricting eligibility for special admissions for students with disabilities based on the type of disability constitutes discrimination in the university admissions process.

The National Human Rights Commission Gwangju Office announced on January 20 that it had recommended 13 domestic universities, which limit eligibility for special education admissions based on disability type, to correct this practice. This recommendation comes in connection with a complaint filed by an individual, referred to as A, who has a child with severe autism, against University B regarding the restriction of disability types in the university’s special education admissions process.

National Human Rights Commission Gwangju Office.

The Commission stated, "Although each student has a different type of disability, if higher education institutions fail to provide individualized educational opportunities on the grounds that their educational environment is insufficient for certain types of disabilities, this fundamentally limits the opportunity to receive an education and places the entire disadvantage on the student." The Commission judged that the university’s actions constituted discrimination against people with disabilities.

This case originated when A’s child applied for the 2025 special education admissions at University B but was rejected solely because the child was not classified as having a physical or brain lesion disability. A filed a complaint with the Commission, claiming this was discrimination against people with disabilities.

In response, University B explained that it had no choice but to restrict eligibility by disability type, citing insufficient facilities and support staff to ensure that all students with disabilities could attend classes without inconvenience.

However, the Commission took into consideration that University B has improved its system to expand eligibility for special admissions to all students with disabilities starting from the 2027 academic year and therefore excluded University B from its recommendations. Instead, it recommended that the other 13 universities with similar restrictions on disability types improve their systems.