Rep. Park Beom-gye analyzes SNU admissions data

Yu Hong-rim, president of Seoul National University, Lee In-jae, president of Incheon National University, and other institutional witnesses take an oath at a National Assembly Education Committee national audit of Seoul National University and other institutions on Friday. [Yonhap]
Yu Hong-rim, president of Seoul National University, Lee In-jae, president of Incheon National University, and other institutional witnesses take an oath at a National Assembly Education Committee national audit of Seoul National University and other institutions on Friday. [Yonhap]

The concentration of Seoul National University entrants from the greater Seoul metropolitan area has deepened over the past five years, newly released admissions data show. Critics say the trend has spread even to the university's regional balance admissions track, raising questions about the program's effectiveness.

According to data submitted to Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Park Beom-gye — who represents Daejeon's Seo-gu district and sits on the National Assembly Education Committee — the share of SNU entrants from the greater Seoul area rose from 64.7 percent in 2022 to 68.4 percent this year.

Over the same period, total enrollment grew by 292 students, from 3,436 to 3,728. Students from the greater Seoul area increased by 328 — from 2,223 to 2,551 — while those from outside the metropolitan area fell by 36, dropping from 1,213 to 1,177.

Park also highlighted a growing metropolitan skew within SNU's regional balance admissions track, which is designed to broaden geographic access. The number of students from the greater Seoul area admitted through that track rose from 342, or 50.6 percent, in 2022 to 393, or 59.5 percent, in 2026, while those from outside the area fell by 67, from 334 to 267. Students from Seoul and Gyeonggi Province alone accounted for 56.1 percent of all regional balance admissions in 2026.

While the metropolitan share of SNU's overall enrollment rose 3.7 percentage points over five years, the metropolitan share among first-round admits through the regional balance track climbed 8.9 percentage points — more than double the overall rate.

Although the regional balance track has historically admitted a higher proportion of students from outside the metropolitan area than the general admissions pool, the accelerating concentration of metropolitan applicants is raising concerns that the track's ability to narrow educational opportunity gaps between regions may be weakening.

"It is already a problem that roughly seven in 10 SNU entrants come from the greater Seoul area, but what demands even greater attention is that the share of metropolitan students is rising sharply even within the regional balance track," Park said. "The track should not simply offer recommendation slots to high schools across the country — it must genuinely work to reduce the educational opportunity gap between regions."


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