N Repeaters Surpass 30%... "Need to Strengthen Early Admission"

[Financial News] The percentage of N repeaters among CSAT applicants has surpassed 30%. This situation is accompanied by side effects such as the overheating of the private education market and educational inequality, increasing distrust in public education. To resolve this, it is pointed out that improvements such as reducing regular admissions and strengthening early admissions in the college entrance system are necessary.
Namgoong Ji-young, Senior Research Fellow at the Korea Educational Development Institute, said on the 29th, "The reason for the increase in N repeaters is not because of failing to get into college, but because they are not satisfied with the college or department they were accepted into," explaining that "it is a choice made to enter top-tier universities in Seoul." Furthermore, she analyzed, "The preference for top-tier universities is fundamentally due to the lack of good jobs and the widening wage gap based on academic background in the labor market, which is a socio-economic fundamental issue."
According to the report 'The Status and Causes of the Increase in College Entrance N Repeaters and Mitigation Measures' published by Researcher Namgoong, although the number of high school seniors among CSAT applicants is decreasing, the number of N repeaters has continuously increased, surpassing 30% since 2023. The proportion of N repeaters for the 2025 academic year is 31%, the highest since the 1997 academic year.
In fact, analyzing educational data, among 4,176 college entrants in the 2021 academic year, 452 students, or 10.8%, took a leave of absence or dropped out. The most common reason for leave of absence or dropout was "preparation for re-taking the exam," at 40.5%. Recent changes in CSAT difficulty and the implementation of the integrated CSAT for humanities and sciences have influenced the decision to become an N repeater, showing a tendency for increased demand for private education to prepare for the CSAT.
Researcher Namgoong further pointed out, "Moreover, the higher the parental socioeconomic status, the higher the rate of choosing to become an N repeater and participating in private education, exacerbating educational inequality."
In particular, she emphasized the need to reconsider the current policy of applying a 40% regular admission ratio only to universities in Seoul to alleviate the overheating of college entrance N repeaters. As an improvement measure, she argued, "Considering the limitations of the college entrance regular admission system that reflects the quantitative scores of CSAT grades under the relative evaluation system, we should move towards strengthening early admissions that value the diversity, potential, and growth potential of learners."
In fact, after the Ministry of Education's announcement of the 'Measures to Strengthen Fairness in the College Entrance System' in 2019, major universities in Seoul expanded the regular admission ratio to over 40%, which has been analyzed to promote the increase of N repeaters. It is a dominant view that the increase in N repeaters and decisions to discontinue studies have been influenced by the increase in the number of students choosing N repeaters in the Seoul metropolitan area and medical-related fields, as well as the expansion of recruitment quotas for medical-related departments.
Additionally, she mentioned the possibility of using CSAT scores as a qualification exam rather than for regular admission selection, using them only as a tool to verify the minimum academic ability required for university learning based on whether the minimum academic achievement standard for CSAT is met.
Furthermore, Researcher Namgoong argued that there are limitations to alleviating the overheating of college entrance N repeaters solely through changes in the college entrance system and policies. She suggested that, along with policy efforts to resolve the dual structure problem of the labor market, a nationwide, all-citizen consciousness reform movement is needed, such as campaigns to alleviate academic elitism, materialism, and competitive culture.  

monarch@fnnews.com Kim Man-gi Reporter