April 22, 2024
SEOUL – The anxiety among students and parents who are preparing for university enrollment next year is intensifying as the government took a step back from the medical reform plan on Friday, allowing medical schools to adjust the enrollment quota by up to 50 percent.
Less than five months ahead of the admission process for the 2025 academic year, the government’s recent decision has made possible a scenario where the total medical quota could be cut to as low as some 1,000 seats, half of what the government initially pushed for.
Meanwhile, the heads of medical schools nationwide on Sunday urged the government to freeze the medical school enrollment quota for next year and start a new set of negotiations for the class of 2026 by forging a joint consultative body with the medical community.
They also mentioned that the resignation of doctors and the suspension of medical students will cause the collapse of the medical workforce training system and the irreparable loss of education.
After an almost two-month-long standoff between doctors and the Yoon Suk Yeol administration over the increase plan, the government said Friday that it would allow 32 medical colleges to slash the number of new student slots they received last month by up to half. Medical schools will have to adjust their admissions quotas by the end of April.
Students and parents lambasted the government’s recent announcement as “irresponsible and inconsiderate of those preparing to go to universities,” as strategies and plans for university enrollment constantly have to change.
As students with the highest grades often apply for medical schools, the enrollment quota of such schools could be a significant variable in Korean university admissions, impacting minimum scores to pass for other prestigious universities and other medical-related institutions such as dental and pharmaceutical schools.
One private academy predicted that if the enrollment is reduced to 1,000, the passing scores of Suneung, or Korean college entrance exam, for medical schools could increase by 1.5 points, compared to the initial plan of 2,000.
One university student who has been preparing to apply for medical school next year wrote an online post and said he felt giving another try this year to be “a waste of time” if the enrollment quota is not increased as much.
The government’s plan to increase the 2,000 seats for medical schools has brought significant waves in Korean education and society, as doctors are considered to have the “dream job” here that guarantees wealth and status.
Private academies that help students prepare for Suneung opened late-night classes targeting those who already have careers but are hoping to enroll in medical schools for a more “stable and high-income job.”
South Korean government has been strongly arguing that boosting the medical school enrollment quota by 2,000 per year is the minimum number to address the nation’s shortage of doctors and increase the medical service quality in rural regions.