“College Entrance Exam Held Twice a Year”… Mixed Reactions to Na Kyung-won and Hong Jun-pyo’s Admissions Promises

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Na Kyung-won and Hong Joon-pyo Candidates Announce "Expansion of 100% College Entrance Exam System"

Na Kyung-won, a member of the National Assembly from the People Power Party, and Hong Joon-pyo, former mayor of Daegu, who are contenders in the party's presidential primary, have proposed a reform in the college entrance exam system that would allow students to take the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) twice a year. The responses to this proposal are sharply divided.

On the 18th, Na Kyung-won held a press conference at the National Assembly’s communication hall, stating, "We will establish a fair and predictable entrance examination system." She added, "By conducting the 100% CSAT admissions more than twice a year, we aim to enhance fairness centered on the CSAT and increase predictability in the entrance exam process."

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She emphasized, "We must alleviate the anxiety of students and parents regarding entrance exams and prevent incidents like the 'Cho Kuk scandal' that could cause future generations to suffer."

Na stressed the importance of "completely normalizing public education to restore the fundamentals of education," highlighting the need to improve the politicized educational environment.

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On the same day, Hong Joon-pyo, another candidate in the People Power Party's presidential primary, also held a press conference at the Daehwa Building election office in Yeouido, Seoul, where he stated, "We will reform college admissions to center around the CSAT and apply the principle of '100% CSAT admissions.'"

On the 6th, Hong had previously claimed on Facebook, "We need to simplify the process so that students can take the CSAT twice a year and enter universities with their best scores."

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The concept of 'taking the CSAT twice a year' has been mentioned several times. The first-ever CSAT was administered on August 20, 1993, during the final year of President Roh Tae-woo's term.

At that time, the CSAT was held twice a year, in August and November, to give students two opportunities for what is considered an important exam.

However, as the second CSAT was found to be more difficult than the first, many examinees’ scores decreased significantly, leading to criticism regarding "wasting national resources" and "putting students through two rounds of suffering." As a result, the exam was reduced to once a year from the following year.

This has caused sharply polarized reactions regarding the proposals for 'taking the CSAT twice a year' and '100% CSAT admissions.'

Some individuals have responded negatively, citing reasons such as difficulty adjustments between exams and increased private tutoring burdens.

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Meanwhile, both Na and Hong have included the 'Seoul Run' policy in their pledges.

'Seoul Run' was introduced in 2021 to bridge educational disparities, allowing low-income students to access private internet lectures for free.

Na has announced her intention to implement a nationwide expansion of 'Seoul Run' as 'National 8-Do Run,' while Hong has proposed 'Yeo-min-dong-rak 8080' as a key pledge to expand welfare for low-income families, stating, “We will integrate Mayor Oh Se-hoon’s 'Seoul Run' project so that middle and high school students across the country can study while attending 'Gangnam online lectures.'"

Image Source: Na Kyung-won speaking at a press conference held at the Daegu City Council on April 21. 2025.4.21 / News1, Hong Joon-pyo holding a press conference to announce his vision for the welfare sector at his election office in Yeouido, Seoul, on April 21. 2025.4.21 / News1, reference image for understanding the article / News1, YouTube 'Seoul Run'

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