2027 Regional Medical System Admissions Focused on Early Selection

2027 marks the first implementation of the 'Regional Medical System' admissions process, which is primarily focused on early selection. A total of 488 students will be admitted across 31 medical schools nationwide, with 93.9% of these selections, or 458 students, made through early admissions. Only 30 students, or 6.1%, will be admitted through regular admissions, highlighting a clear trend toward early selection.

According to an analysis by Jongno Academy on June 11, 28 out of the 31 universities will select all their regional medical system candidates exclusively through early admissions. Regionally, four universities in the Gyeongin area will admit 22 students, four in Gangwon will admit 63, five in Daegu and Gyeongbuk will admit 72, and six in Busan, Ulsan, and Gyeongnam will admit 97, all without any regular admissions.

In contrast, only three universities will conduct a split admission process with both early and regular selections. Chungbuk National University will admit 13 students (33.3%), Chonnam National University will admit 9 (29.0%), and Jeju National University will admit 8 (28.6%), totaling 30 students through regular admissions.

The most critical factor determining success in the early admissions process will be the 'minimum college entrance exam scores.' Among the 458 students selected through early admissions, a significant 97.6%, or 447 students, will be subject to these minimum score requirements. Without strong exam scores, even students with excellent grades may find it difficult to gain admission.

Most regional universities, including those in Gangwon (63 students), Daegu and Gyeongbuk (72 students), Busan, Ulsan, and Gyeongnam (97 students), Honam (79 students), and Chungcheong (105 students), have fully implemented the minimum score requirements for all early admissions. In Jeju, 90% of the 20 students selected through early admissions will also need to meet these standards. Conversely, in the Gyeongin area, only 13 out of 22 early admissions (59.1%) will require minimum scores, indicating a lower application rate for these standards. Only three universities—Sungkyunkwan University (3 students), Inha University (6 students), and Jeju National University (2 students)—will not apply minimum scores at all, totaling 11 students.

Admissions experts predict that the introduction of the regional medical system will have significant ripple effects across the entire landscape of natural science admissions. Lim Sung-ho, head of Jongno Academy, stated, "While the regional medical system will primarily attract students with strong early grades, universities are imposing relatively strict minimum score requirements. Ultimately, the cutoff for admissions will likely favor students who excel in both grades and exam scores, leading to a significant number of these top students leaving the pool." He added that this could result in a slight decrease in the cutoff scores for general science programs.

However, a potential limiting factor on the actual decrease in cutoff scores is the movement of repeat students. Lim noted, "Current students with strong grades perceive this year's admissions as their last chance to retake the exam under the existing grading system. The influx of these repeat and second-time students is likely to be more active than in previous years, which may mean that the expected decrease in cutoff scores for general programs may not be as significant as anticipated."