The regular admission share at major Seoul-based universities has declined slightly but remains around 40%, indicating that the influence of the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) has not significantly changed. While the broader trend across all universities points to an expansion of rolling admissions, top-tier universities favored by applicants continue to maintain a high proportion of regular admissions, according to analysis.
According to the "Comparison of Admission Selection by Type at Seoul's Top 11 Universities" released Monday by Etoos Education Evaluation Research Institute, the regular admission share at these universities for the 2028 academic year stood at 39.3%, down 2.5 percentage points from 41.8% the previous year. During the same period, the rolling admission share increased from 56.1% to 58.6%. The number of students selected through regular admissions fell from 17,460 for the 2027 academic year to 15,562 for 2028.
The 11 universities surveyed were Konkuk, Korea, Sogang, Seoul National, University of Seoul, Sungkyunkwan, Yonsei, Ewha Womans, Chung-Ang, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, and Hanyang. Their total enrollment rose slightly from 41,182 for the 2027 academic year to 41,565 for 2028.
While the rolling admission-centered structure was more pronounced across all universities, major Seoul universities maintained rolling admissions at 58.6% and regular admissions at 39.3%, with the regular share still approaching 40%. Korea University will select 1,867 students through regular admissions for the 2028 academic year, maintaining about 40% of its total intake, while Sungkyunkwan University will admit 1,658 and Chung-Ang University 2,018 through the regular track.
However, some universities showed a trend of reducing regular admissions. At Seoul National University, regular admission slots fell from 1,529 to 1,247, lowering the regular share from 40.9% to 32.8%. Yonsei University also saw its regular admission intake drop from 1,564 to 1,233, bringing its share down to the 30% range, while Hanyang University's regular admission slots decreased from 1,341 to 1,037, lowering the share from 39.6% to 30.2%.
The admissions industry advises that applicants targeting top-tier universities should prepare for the CSAT in parallel. "At the major universities where applicants actually focus, the regular admission share remains high," an official at a major admissions academy said. "It is difficult to neglect CSAT preparation when aiming to enter top-tier universities."
