Which Universities Are Advantageous for Science Students' 'Cross-Application'? ... Turns Out It's SKY

Korea University Gives Higher Converted Standard Scores to Science Subjects than Social Studies
Seoul National University and Yonsei University Reflect Standard Scores as Is
But Science Subjects Have Higher Standard Scores than Social Studies This Year, Giving an Advantage

In this entrance exam, Seoul National University, Yonsei University, and Korea University appeared to be advantageous universities when science students applied to liberal arts departments through 'cross-application.' This is because they give higher scores for science exploration subjects compared to social studies exploration subjects.

On the 8th, the day of distribution of the 2024 College Scholastic Ability Test score reports, third-year students at Gyeongbok High School in Jongno-gu, Seoul, are checking their scores. Photo by Joint Press Corps

According to the '2024 Major University Exploration Conversion Standard Score Analysis' data from Jongro Academy on the 25th, even if the same percentile is recorded in the CSAT exploration section, Korea University awards a conversion standard score up to 4.5 points higher for science exploration subjects than for social studies exploration subjects. The conversion standard score is a score that universities independently convert from the examinee's CSAT standard score. In an entrance exam where 1 point can determine success or failure, 4.5 points is a significant score.

Jongro Academy also analyzed that Seoul National University and Yonsei University are somewhat advantageous when science students apply across departments. Although Seoul National University and Yonsei University directly reflect the CSAT standard scores, this year the standard scores for science exploration subjects are higher than those for social studies exploration subjects. Lim Seong-ho, CEO of Jongro Academy, said, “Although the scores by percentile are the same, there are fewer competitors in the same score range for social studies exploration than for science exploration,” adding, “As a result, it works favorably when science students apply across departments.” Sogang University, Hanyang University, Kyung Hee University, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Soongsil University, and Sejong University were also found to be advantageous for science students applying across departments.

Conversely, there are universities where science students are disadvantaged when applying across departments. In the case of Ewha Womans University, although the conversion standard score for science exploration subjects is higher than for social studies exploration subjects, the actual reflected converted score is less favorable for science exploration subjects. This is because the converted score is calculated by comparing the highest conversion standard score with the examinee's conversion standard score. For example, in the percentile range of the mid-90s, a science exploration subject receives a converted score of 94.77 points, whereas a social studies exploration subject receives 97.01 points.

CEO Lim Seong-ho said, “Compared to last year, there may be an increase in liberal arts cross-applications at major universities in Seoul,” and added, “With the expansion of medical school admission quotas next year, there is a possibility that science students will show a pattern of somewhat upward and confident applications.”

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