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The 2027 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) will be held at 1,312 test centers nationwide on Thursday, November 19.
This year, there were 551,864 applicants, and this is the last exam under the current elective system of Korean language, math, social studies, and science exploration.
We looked at the changes this time, the schedule on the day of the test, and things to note.
Official printing of tentative scoring table... ‘AI glasses’ warning
Starting this year, a provisional score sheet will be printed on the back of the test admission ticket. This is a table in which test takers record their answers so that they can check their expected score after the test is over.
Provisional scoring sheets can be filled out during exam time or during breaks when the proctor has left the room. However, if you write it while the question and answer sheets are being collected after the end command sounds, it will be treated as cheating. When the end command sounds, you must immediately stop writing and revising your answers as well as filling out the provisional scoring sheet.
The use of a personally prepared black computer marker is also permitted.
In the exam room, marker pens and mechanical pencils for computer use are provided as before, but test takers can now bring their usual marker pens and use them. Personal sharpies cannot be used during the exam. Answers and handwriting confirmation text must be written with a black computer pen.
In particular, in this CSAT, prevention of cheating using smart glasses equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) functions has emerged as a major inspection item. This year, tips for identifying smart glasses are included in the test proctor's manual. The proctor may ask the examinee to take off his glasses and place them on the desk, and the examinee must cooperate with the verification process.
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If you bring smart glasses and do not submit them before the start of the first period and are caught in possession, the test will be invalidated. Even if you wear it during the test, it is considered used, and the test is invalidated, and your eligibility to take the CSAT the following year is also suspended. Failure to comply with the supervisor's confirmation request may be processed as serious misconduct after review.
Mobile phones, smartwatches, tablets, earphones, electronic dictionaries, electronic cigarettes, and auxiliary batteries are also prohibited from being brought into the test site. If you inevitably bring it, you must submit it to the supervisor before the start of the first period. Even if the power is turned off, if you are caught carrying it without submitting it, it will be treated as cheating even during break time.
Only analog watches without communication or payment functions and without electronic display are permitted. Items needed for physical conditions or medical reasons, such as hearing aids, magnifying glasses, and blood sugar management devices, must follow related procedures, including prior confirmation and inspection by a supervisor during each period.
On the 9th, Minister of Education Choi Kyo-jin announced the precautions for test-takers, saying, "To prevent the efforts made so far from being wasted due to an unpleasant incident, we ask test-takers to be sure to read the precautions before the exam and not to bring in any electronic devices."
Applicants must attend a preliminary meeting on the 18th, the day before the exam, receive an admission ticket, and confirm the location of the test center and selected areas and subjects. On the day of the test, you must bring your admission ticket and a physical ID card to verify your identity.
Resident registration cards, driver's licenses, and youth ID cards within the validity period are accepted. Passports without a resident registration number must be submitted along with a passport information certificate. Student ID cards with a photo, name, date of birth, and school principal's seal can be used, but mobile ID cards are not accepted.
If you have lost your admission ticket, you can get it reissued by visiting the test management center at the test site by 8 a.m. on the day of the test with the same photo and ID card you used on the application form.
All test takers must enter the designated exam room by 8:10 a.m. Test takers who did not select Korean for the first period also enter by the same time, receive guidance, and then move to the waiting room according to the supervisor's instructions. From the second period onwards, you must enter the room 10 minutes before the start of each period.
The test begins with Korean at 8:40 a.m. and is conducted in the following order: Mathematics, English, Korean History/Inquiry, Second Foreign Language, and Chinese Characters.
The English listening evaluation is conducted within 25 minutes from 1:10 p.m. After the Korean History test, 15 minutes are given for collecting question and answer sheets and distributing inquiry questions and answers, and between the two inquiry subjects, there is 2 minutes for collecting question papers. The timetable above is based on general test takers, and a separate timetable may apply to those eligible for test pieces.
Korean history is a required exam subject. If you do not take the exam, your entire CSAT score will be invalidated and you will not be able to receive a score report. The areas of inquiry must be taken in the order of subjects listed in the application. Test takers who select only one subject will wait for the first subject, turn down their answer sheets, and then take the test starting at 4:07 p.m. You cannot prepare for the test during this waiting time.
Vehicle access is restricted within 200m of the test site. To reduce traffic congestion, the government is requesting cooperation from government offices and businesses to adjust work hours to after 10 a.m., and is promoting the expansion of subway operations in the metropolitan area and the deployment of emergency transport vehicles. During the English listening test, noise prevention measures such as coordination of takeoff and landing of aircraft and helicopters are also implemented.
Meanwhile, the total number of applicants this year decreased by 2,310 compared to last year. While the number of enrolled students decreased by 16,506 to 355,391, the number of graduates increased by 13,784 to 173,706.
There are 196,473 non-enrolled students, including 22,767 applicants for qualification exams and other qualifications, accounting for 35.6% of the total. This means that more than one out of three applicants are non-current students.
Among elective subjects, the focus on social studies was noticeable. Among social and scientific inquiry applicants, 69.6% chose only social studies subjects. In mathematics, 336,539 people chose 'Probability and Statistics', accounting for approximately 64.9% of mathematics applicants.
This year's CSAT will also be linked to EBS textbooks and lectures at a level of 50% based on the number of questions. It is an indirect linking method that uses passages, diagrams, and materials from the textbook to pose new problems.
The final college entrance exam taken with an optional subject system
This year's CSAT is the last test administered under the current system of selecting elective subjects from Korean, mathematics, social studies, and science exploration.
Korean and math are taken together as common and elective subjects. For Korean, choose between 'Speech and Writing' and 'Language and Media', and for mathematics, choose between 'Probability and Statistics', 'Calculus', and 'Geometry'. For social and scientific inquiry, you can choose up to two subjects out of 17 subjects.
Starting with the 2028 CSAT, which will be held next year, elective subjects in these areas will be abolished. Korean and math are common questions without any elective subjects, and applicants for social studies and science inquiry will take both integrated social studies and integrated science.
Accordingly, test takers who take the CSAT again next year after this year's test must prepare according to the revised test scope and test method.
This year’s CSAT scores will be notified on Friday, December 11th.
