Departments with Reduced Quotas Due to 'Mujeongong' Introduction... "Admission Confusion"

Universities Greatly Expanding Non-Major Admissions in Early Decision
Individual Department Quotas Tend to Decrease Compared to Last Year
"Admission Cutoffs for Specific Departments May Rise"

As universities significantly expand non-major admissions for next year's entrance exams, students who had set goals and prepared for specific majors are thrown into confusion. Not only have the admission quotas for existing departments decreased, but students also have to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of applying through non-major admissions.

According to the 2025 early admission guidelines released by each university on the 3rd, the admission quotas by department at universities that expanded non-major admissions have mostly decreased compared to this year. In large-scale departments or divisions with more than 70 students, some reduced their admission quotas by more than 10. The non-major quotas are not increased like medical school quotas but are drawn by reducing admission numbers from various departments.

Among the top 10 major universities, Kyung Hee University, which has most significantly increased the type allowing students to choose majors regardless of division, will admit 165 students to the Division of Interdisciplinary Studies and 241 students to the Division of Liberal Arts (International Campus). The admission quotas per department have decreased by anywhere from 1 to more than 20 students. The Mechanical Engineering department, which had an admission quota of 150 this year, has been reduced to 128, and the Computer Engineering department, considered a popular major, decreased from 81 to 67. In the humanities and social sciences division, the Accounting and Taxation department quota dropped from 63 to 53.

On the 17th, students and their families attending the '2024 CSAT Results and Regular Admission Score Prediction Briefing' held at Daeyang Hall, Sejong University, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, are listening to the briefing. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@

At Sungkyunkwan University, which introduced the 'Liberal Major Division' as a non-major admission type after previously conducting admissions by division, the early admission quotas for existing divisions have also decreased. This year, 105 students were admitted through the humanities division early admissions, but next year, the number will decrease by 14 to 91. The social sciences division will shrink from 129 to 107 students. For the engineering division, the number of freshmen admitted will decrease from 288 to 215, a reduction of 73 students.

In the admissions field, there are reactions of confusion as some students had prepared by deciding on a specific department or division to enter. Especially for those who prepared through the student record comprehensive screening, which considers career suitability, the significant expansion of non-major admissions has increased their concerns. On an admissions community, user A commented on the expanded non-major admissions guidelines of a university, saying, "It means the non-major quotas were taken from several departments," and added, "It feels disappointing when you prepared focusing on just one department." User B also said, "Even if you have a department in mind, applying through non-major admissions might be advantageous, so it's a dilemma."

Industry experts also evaluated that the announcement of the non-major scale, with the application deadline approaching, has made exam preparation more difficult. Lim Seong-ho, CEO of Jongro Academy, explained, "Examinees need to closely monitor how much the admission quotas for each department they want to apply to have been reduced among universities that have significantly increased non-major admissions and devise their application strategies accordingly," adding, "In cases where admissions are conducted by division-based non-major, the acceptance threshold for specific departments might actually rise compared to non-major departments."

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