Gyeonggi, Incheon get 361 new med school seats with 1,639 open in provincial area

The South Korean government has released a college admissions plan for 40 medical schools nationwide for the school year 2025. The total number of med school seats increased by 2,000 from 3,058 to 5,058. Compared to the current quotas, med schools in the non-capital area will get 1,639 new freshmen, with only 361 seats added to those in Gyeonggi Province and Incheon. Med schools located in Seoul will get no new seats. Despite strong opposition from doctors, the government has swiftly announced the expansion of med school quotas to make it clear to achieve its policy goals. The country’s med school seats will be increased for the first time in 27 years since 1998.

Seven flagship Korean national Universities, including Kyungpook National University, Pusan National University, and Chonnam National University, increased their med school quotas by as many as 200 seats, becoming “mammoth” colleges nationwide. In particular, Chungbuk National University saw a 308 percent increase from 49 to 200 seats. Mini-sized med schools raised their quotas from 50 seats to 80 to 100. Mid-sized schools in the non-capital area will enroll a total number of 100 to 150 students a year. The Ministry of Education explained that new med school seats were allocated to prioritize local schools, help small-sized ones enhance their capabilities, and support essential fields.

None of the new seats was given to Seoul, home to high-ranking med schools and the country’s top five hospitals (Asan Medical Center, Seoul National University Hospital, Samsung Medical Center, Severance Hospital, Samsung Medical Center, and Seoul St. Mary's Hospital). "At first, we considered creating even some seats in the capital city,” an insider of the Ministry of Health and Welfare said. “However, we listened to the voices that there should be a better balance between Seoul and the rest of the country.”

The announcement was met with an immediate backlash from doctors’ groups. “Starting today, we will join our forces with 140,000 doctors for the Yoon Suk Yeol administration to step down,” said Joo Soo-ho, the head in charge of press relations in the Korean Medical Association’s emergency measure committee, on Wednesday. “We will welcome coalitions with political circles if necessary.”


Ye-Na Choi yena@donga.com