Special COVID-19 Prevention Period for CSAT Starting from the 19th... Separate Test Centers for Confirmed and Quarantined Individuals (Comprehensive)

Strengthened Quarantine Inspections for Hagwon, Gyoseupso, and Study Cafes

Yoo Eun-hye, Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs and Minister of Education, is announcing the concentrated safety management plan for the CSAT at the government Seoul office briefing room on the 15th. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kum Boryeong] Starting two weeks before the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) scheduled for December 3, 2021, the government will operate a 'CSAT Special Quarantine Period.' Quarantine inspections targeting private academies, tutoring centers, and study cafes will be strengthened. The location where COVID-19 confirmed examinees will take the CSAT will be finalized on the 26th.

The Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health and Welfare reported these measures in the '2021 CSAT Intensive Safety Management Plan' to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters and announced it on the 15th.

Operation of 'CSAT Special Quarantine Period' from November 19 to December 3

The government will operate the CSAT special quarantine period from November 19, two weeks before the exam, until the exam day on December 3. The policy aims to minimize the risk of infection and quarantine for examinees.

During this period, the Ministry of Education and local education offices will focus quarantine inspections on private academies and tutoring centers, while local governments will focus on study cafes. From the 26th, one week before the CSAT, face-to-face lessons at academies and tutoring centers will be discouraged, and examinees will be advised to refrain from visiting academies.

If a COVID-19 infection occurs through contact within an academy during the special quarantine period, the academy's name, infection route, and reasons will be temporarily disclosed on the Ministry of Education's website. Instructors and staff at academies and tutoring centers must use the Ministry of Education's health status self-diagnosis application to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Quarantine management will also be strengthened at places frequented by examinees, such as game establishments, karaoke rooms, and movie theaters. The government has requested examinees and their families to avoid using enclosed, crowded, and close-contact facilities among multi-use facilities and to refrain from small gatherings.

Regarding CSAT test sites, depending on the conditions of local governments and schools, remote classes or discretionary holidays may be implemented on December 4, the day after the CSAT.

The scene of a test site on November 14 last year, when the 2020 College Scholastic Ability Test was held (Photo by Asia Economy DB)

Separate Test Sites for COVID-19 Symptomatic Individuals, Self-Quarantined, and Confirmed Cases

The government will operate separate test sites to provide maximum opportunities for COVID-19 symptomatic individuals, self-quarantined persons, and confirmed cases to take the CSAT.

For examinees confirmed positive, local governments secured 29 locations and about 120 beds as of the 13th. Each city and province utilized base hospitals and residential treatment centers. The government plans to secure additional beds if the number of confirmed examinees increases.

Confirmed examinees have been transferred since the 12th to hospitals and residential treatment centers designated as test sites. They must have a medical opinion stating they can take the exam for an extended period.

For self-quarantined examinees, a total of 113 test sites and 754 test rooms across 86 test districts have been secured. Separate test sites for self-quarantined individuals will be established starting on the 26th.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Yoo Eun-hye stated, "It is not appropriate to disclose the number of confirmed or self-quarantined CSAT examinees at this point. However, we believe that with the currently secured beds and separate test sites, examinees can take the CSAT stably."

The government will operate a joint situation room with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency and the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation to analyze confirmed and quarantined examinee situations by local government and provide information to related agencies.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.