Korean National Entrance Test

Korea National Annual University Entrance Test

Korean National Entrance Exam called College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) is an annual test conducted nationwide on November 15 every year. In the Korean language, the CSAT is known as Suneung and it brings the whole country to a standstill. It is a nine-hours long exam starting at 8:40 am morning and lasting at 5.40 pm evening. Suneung is one of the most grueling moments of a student's life as they are being tested on Korean, English, maths, social studies and sciences. This year around 0.6 million (600 thousand) students appeared for the exam.

Korean parents see this exam a defining moment for their children, they consider high score will provide entrance to a high ranked university which ultimately will lead them to get a high-salaried job. According to some, it has effects not only on the job, but also on the marriage. Therefore, every student aiming for entering a good university such as Sky - the collective name for the country's three most prestigious universities, Seoul, Korea, and Yonsei. The SKY universities are considered as the Harvard, Oxford, and Cambridge, of South Korea. It is interesting to know that the SKY graduates are the most attractive marriage partners, along with women with degrees from Ewha Womans University – making it SKYE.

The procedure of Selection: Students are graded on the percentage of correct answers and results are classified into nine categories. Only 1% of students are admitted into the SKY. Approximately 20 percent of students retake the exam because they don't do well in the first try. Some even take it three times. 

Govt. Measurements for Suneung: Govt. of Korea takes special measures on the day of the Suneung test. Some of the measures, but not limited to are:

• air traffic is halted during the listening part of the exam.
• offices open one hour late to keep the roads clear for students on their way to the exam.
• in some cases, students are also escorted to the examination centers by police officers.
• nobody is allowed except the concerns to enter or go around nearby the exam locations to avoid the noise to its maximum.
• buses and subways extended rush-hour services by two hours to help all test-takers arrive on time
• traffic is restricted by police within 200 meters of test centers.

Parents Role: South Korean mothers play the role of ‘educational agent’ for their child. They take the responsibility to micro-manage the child's schedule so that not a single study minute is lost. Both mother and father pray for the success of their children. 

In sum, CSAT test is considered as a life and death exam in Korea. This is a good example to learn from particularly, the Govt. arrangments for this exam, students' preparation by their moms and study ethics.