Medical School Expansion, Now 'How to Increase'... The Key Is Selection Through Regional Talent Screening

The government announced that it will increase the number of medical school admissions by 2,000 starting from the 2025 academic year. While only the overall increase scale and rough implementation plan have been set, follow-up tasks such as the allocation of quotas by university and the scale of regional talent selection remain. Since this must be reflected in this year's admission plan, attention is focused on whether the government can resolve the regional medical workforce gap and minimize side effects.

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The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on the 6th that the goal for expanding the number of doctors is 10,000 by 2035. To achieve this, they plan to increase the medical school quota by 2,000 starting from the 2025 academic year, expanding from the current 3,058 to 5,058.

The follow-up procedures will be carried out by the Ministry of Education in consultation with the Ministry of Health and Welfare. On the 7th, a Ministry of Education official stated at a back briefing held at the Government Complex Sejong, "Once the Ministry of Health and Welfare officially notifies the scale of the medical school quota increase, we will consult with them to establish criteria for allocating medical school quotas by university and plan to receive the 2025 academic year medical school quota demand from universities by mid-March."

Based on this, the Ministry of Education plans to finalize the allocation of medical school quotas by university and notify them by mid to late April. Universities will revise and announce the 2025 academic year admission guidelines by the end of May after review by the Korea Council for University Education. According to the Enforcement Decree of the Higher Education Act, each university must disclose the 'university admission plan' on its website at least 1 year and 10 months before the start of each admission year, but changes are possible if there are unavoidable reasons recognized by the Minister of Education or if there are departmental reorganizations for structural reform.

Minister of Health and Welfare Cho Kyu-hong is announcing the plan to expand medical school admission quotas on the 6th at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jo Yong-jun jun21@

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The government proposed increasing the number of regional talent selection quotas as a solution to the chronic problem of regional medical workforce shortages pointed out by the medical community. The Ministry of Health and Welfare explained at the time of the announcement that to focus the increased quota mainly on non-metropolitan medical schools, they will promote filling more than 60% of the quota through regional talent selection. The Ministry of Education also added, "We will proceed with a firm commitment by closely consulting with non-metropolitan universities and utilizing possible policy incentive measures."

Accordingly, some analyses predict that the number of regional talent selection quotas will more than double. According to analysis data from Jongno Academy on the 7th, if the regional talent selection ratio is expanded to 60%, the regional talent special selection is expected to increase from 1,068 to a maximum of 2,018.

However, it remains to be seen how many quotas will be allocated specifically by university and region. Currently, the Ministry of Education has only stated that it will not change the legally stipulated regional talent selection ratio (40%, 20% for Gangwon and Jeju) and will use a consultation method to ensure each university meets more than 60%.

Previously, in last year's government survey on the demand for medical school quota expansion targeting 40 medical schools nationwide, the demand ranged from a minimum of 2,151 to a maximum of 2,847, so the government explains that each university can implement this within current conditions. However, since this affects existing admission quotas and acceptance scores within each university and region, concrete quotas and institutional supplements are necessary.

Questions are also raised about whether the regional and essential workforce gap can be resolved without additional measures such as the introduction of public medical schools and regional doctor systems. The Better Health Care Alliance, a health care professional organization, stated in a press release on the 8th, "Expanding the regional talent selection to 60% does not guarantee that the increased number of doctors will serve in the region, so the regional doctor system must be introduced." However, the Ministry of Education explained that due to the tight timeline until the 2025 academic year admissions, they are not considering establishing new medical schools immediately.

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The admissions industry predicts that the increase of 2,000 medical school quotas will change the admission cutoff scores for this year's top-tier applicants. Lim Seong-ho, CEO of Jongno Academy, explained, "Currently, 78.5% of SKY (Seoul National University, Korea University, Yonsei University) successful applicants will be able to enter medical schools," adding, "This inevitably changes the cutoff scores for existing medical, dental, pharmacy, and Korean medicine schools as well." It is analyzed that as the medical school quota expands, students currently attending universities may retake the entrance exam or drop out to prepare again. It is reported that as the 'medical school craze' intensifies, counseling for university students and office workers is increasing in academies.

In the long term, it is also expected that students from Seoul and other metropolitan areas may move to provincial areas from middle school to prepare for medical school. Currently, the regional talent selection is only available to students who entered and graduated from middle schools located in non-metropolitan areas and then entered and graduated from high schools in the regions where provincial medical schools are located.

Lee Mangi, director of Uway Education Evaluation Research Institute, analyzed, "If the regional talent selection increases as expected, the number of people moving to provinces from as early as elementary school may increase," adding, "From the 2028 academic year, not only high school but also middle school must be outside the metropolitan area to be eligible for regional talent selection."

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