Only about 250 students are expected to receive relief after failing to submit applications for the 2027 college admissions cycle due to a system outage. Education Minister Choi Kyo-jin stated that not all 1,200 applicants who did not submit will be granted relief; only those with verified computer log records will be considered.
During a meeting of the National Assembly's Education Committee on September 16, Minister Choi reported on the application system failure. He explained that, despite an extension of the application deadline, the number of students who will receive actual relief based on objective data is expected to be around 250, which represents about 20% of the total non-submitters.
The significant reduction in the number of eligible students is due to the strict 'three criteria for relief' set by the Ministry of Education and the Korea Association of Private University Presidents.
To filter out simple non-submitters, the Ministry has established rigorous standards: the existence of error logs at the time of the system failure (5:50 PM on September 11), a record of actual application attempts (including writing, saving, submitting, and payment attempts) at the university where relief is sought, and acknowledgment of the last submission if multiple application attempts exist.
Minister Choi reiterated that relief procedures are only being conducted for cases where it can be objectively confirmed that the application was not completed. This policy aims to address concerns about fairness and equity following the extension of the deadline, which led to allegations of 'gaming the system' by applicants trying to switch to less competitive programs.
He emphasized that the primary principle of this relief measure is to ensure fairness among applicants and the integrity of the admissions process, explaining that the need for strict criteria was unavoidable to quell concerns about fairness.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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