2024 College Admission Quota Decreases by 5,000... 35.6% Regular Admissions in Capital Area Universities

Daekyohyeop Announces '2024 Academic Year University Admission Plan'
Early Admission Rate Up 1.0%p to 79% YoY
Regular Admission Rate in Capital Area Universities Up 0.3%p YoY
Regular Admission Rate in Capital Area Universities Three Times Higher Than Non-Capital Areas
Capital Area Universities Increase CSAT-Based Admission by 593 Students

Number and Proportion of Regular and Early Admission Quotas by Region for the 2024 Academic Year (Source: Korea Council for University Education)

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] The number of college admissions for the 2024 academic year will decrease by about 5,000 compared to this year. Although the regular admission ratio at universities in the Seoul metropolitan area increased compared to the previous year, the overall regular admission ratio decreased.

On the 26th, the University Admission Committee of the Korea Council for University Education announced the '2024 Academic Year University Admission Implementation Plan' for 196 member universities. The total number of admissions for the 2024 academic year is 344,296, a decrease of 4,828 from the 2023 academic year.

The overall early admission ratio for the 2024 academic year is 79% (272,032 students). The number of early admissions decreased by 410 compared to the previous year, but the ratio increased by 1.0 percentage point. The number of regular admissions decreased by 4,418 compared to the previous year, and the ratio decreased by 1.0 percentage point.

The regular admission ratio at universities in the Seoul metropolitan area rose from 35.3% last year to 35.6% for the 2024 academic year. This is three times higher than that of non-metropolitan universities (11.9%). The number of regular admissions in the metropolitan area is 47,051, while non-metropolitan areas have 25,213.

Number of Applicants by Admission Type for the 2023-2024 Academic Year (Source: Korea Council for University Education)

The reason for the decrease in the overall regular admission ratio (21%) is largely due to the decrease in regular admissions in non-metropolitan areas (4,997 students). Non-metropolitan universities prefer early admissions to secure freshmen early, while major metropolitan universities are increasing their regular admission ratios in line with the Ministry of Education's recommendation to select more than 40% through regular admissions.

Due to the decline in the school-age population, universities have conducted their own restructuring, resulting in an overall decrease in admission numbers. In the 2024 college admission process, 85.8% of early admissions are based on student records, and 91.7% of regular admissions are based on the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT). Compared to the previous year, the number of early admissions based on student records decreased by 2,375, and the number of regular admissions based on the CSAT decreased by 3,611.

For universities in the metropolitan area, early admissions based on student records decreased by 1,056, while regular admissions based on the CSAT slightly increased by 593. For non-metropolitan universities, early admissions based on student records decreased by 1,319, and CSAT-based admissions decreased by 4,204.

With the government mandating opportunity-equalizing selections, the number of social integration admissions for the 2024 academic year increased by 2,372 to 36,434 compared to the previous year. The regional balance admissions (principal recommendation system using academic records) at metropolitan universities also increased by 2,997 compared to the previous year.

The mandatory selection ratio for local universities in medical, dental, oriental medicine, pharmacy, and nursing fields has increased, leading to a rise in regional talent admissions. In the 2024 academic year, 103 universities operate special regional talent admissions, totaling 23,816 students, an increase of 10 universities and 2,581 students compared to the previous year.

The Korea Council for University Education plans to produce the 2024 academic year university admission implementation plan booklet and distribute it to high schools, metropolitan and provincial education offices, and other related organizations, and will post it on the college admission information portal website in July.

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