458 seats at 31 medical schools draw 5,076 applicants nationwide

Regional doctor program outpaces existing local-talent track at 11.2-to-1 vs. 10.52-to-1

Kosin University tops competition at 23-to-1; Sungkyunkwan University leads Greater Seoul at 11.6-to-1

'Significant overlap with local-talent applicants a key variable,' analyst says

An application box for the regional doctor admissions track sits ready at Keimyung University's admissions office on Sunday, the first day applications opened for the new college entrance category. [Yonhap]
An application box for the regional doctor admissions track sits ready at Keimyung University's admissions office on Sunday, the first day applications opened for the new college entrance category. [Yonhap]

More than 5,000 applicants have applied for the newly introduced "regional doctor" admissions track in the 2027 college entrance cycle — and despite requiring 10 years of mandatory regional service after graduation, the program drew stronger competition than the existing local-talent track, which carries no such obligation.

An analysis of 2027 early admissions applications released Monday by Jongno Academy found that 5,076 students applied for 458 seats across the regional doctor track at 31 medical schools nationwide, yielding an average competition ratio of 11.08-to-1.

Among those, 27 medical schools in non-metropolitan regions attracted 4,884 applicants for 436 seats, a ratio of 11.20-to-1. The four medical schools in Gyeonggi Province and Incheon drew 192 applicants for 22 seats, at 8.73-to-1.

The regional doctor program selects medical students on the condition that they complete mandatory service in regional areas for a set period. In non-metropolitan regions, the 11.20-to-1 ratio under the regional doctor track — which requires 10 years of service — surpassed the 10.52-to-1 ratio under the local-talent track, which imposes no such requirement.

By region, the Honam area recorded the highest competition ratio at 13.35-to-1, followed by Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province at 12.60-to-1, Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang Province at 12.31-to-1, the Chungcheong region at 10.76-to-1, Gangwon Province at 8.02-to-1, and Jeju at 4.65-to-1.

A Jongno Academy analysis of 2027 early admissions applications shows 5,076 students applied for 458 seats in the regional doctor track at 31 medical schools nationwide, for an average competition ratio of 11.08-to-1. [Provided by Jongno Academy, produced with ChatGPT]
A Jongno Academy analysis of 2027 early admissions applications shows 5,076 students applied for 458 seats in the regional doctor track at 31 medical schools nationwide, for an average competition ratio of 11.08-to-1. [Provided by Jongno Academy, produced with ChatGPT]

By institution, Kosin University posted the highest competition ratio in the country at 23.00-to-1, with 161 applicants for 7 seats. It was followed by Jeonbuk National University at 21.29-to-1, Dong-A University at 19.53-to-1, Chosun University at 16.89-to-1, Konkuk University's Glocal Campus at 16.00-to-1, Keimyung University at 15.20-to-1, and Yeungnam University at 15.15-to-1.

In Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, Sungkyunkwan University led at 11.67-to-1, followed by Inha University at 9.50-to-1, Gachon University at 8.71-to-1, and Ajou University at 6.50-to-1.

Meanwhile, applications to the existing local-talent track at non-metropolitan medical schools declined. The 27 schools received 10,891 applications this year, down 356, or 3.2 percent, from 11,247 last year. Gangwon Province saw the steepest drop at 18.6 percent, followed by Jeju at 6.7 percent, the Busan-Ulsan-South Gyeongsang area at 5.4 percent, the Chungcheong region at 5.3 percent, and the Daegu-North Gyeongsang area at 2.1 percent. Only the Honam region bucked the trend, rising 7.2 percent.

"This is a different result from the initial outlook that mandatory service would deter applicants," said Kim Yong-jae, head of Jongno Academy. "A significant number of non-metropolitan applicants applied to both the regional doctor track and the local-talent track simultaneously."

He added that cutoff scores and the scale of waitlist movement under the regional doctor program could vary considerably depending on which track students choose after receiving multiple acceptances. "Particularly for the local-talent track, there could be overlap with acceptances at metropolitan-area schools, while the regional doctor track faces potential overlap not only with metropolitan schools but also with the existing local-talent track — meaning the degree of attrition will likely differ by school and region," he said.


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