How is South Korea’s admissions system affecting students’ ability to pursue their dreams?

Through the SIFE WORLDCUP competition, I recognized the problems with the Korean entrance examination system by seeing the dreams and passions of university students from other countries. This article analyzes the reasons why the Korean education system hinders students’ dreams and self-actualization, and emphasizes the need for education that helps students find their dreams through various experiences.

 

Many years ago, when I was a college student, I traveled to Washington, USA to participate in a competition called SIFE WORLDCUP. The SIFE WORLDCUP is a competition that brings together university students from more than 40 countries around the world to present and compete on projects they have designed and implemented over the past year. My experience here was not only about the competition itself, but also a great opportunity to meet university students from around the world and hear their thoughts. I would like to use this experience to shed some light on the problems with the current Korean entrance examination system.
What impressed me the most during the competition was that they had a clear ‘dream’, and while their knowledge was not superior to ours or their resources were not abundant, the passion that came from their ‘dream’ made the difference. To my shame, I have yet to define my own dream. There are many students around me who don’t know what they like and what they want to do. It is a great loss to the nation that even Seoul National University students, who will lead Korea in the future, do not know their dreams.
After thinking about this problem, I found the cause in the Korean entrance examination system. Korean high school students go to school at 8 a.m. and study at night until 11 p.m., cramming for entrance exams. My high school life was no different. School was the majority of my life, and school was my goal. When asked, “What are your goals?” me and the kids around me would say, “I want to go to Seoul National University.” “I want to go to medical school,” I answered without hesitation. The same was true for our teachers. On days when I did well, the head of my grade would call me up and tell me that if I kept this up, I would be able to go to the university of my choice. On the days when I failed, I would be scolded harshly. In retrospect, I realize that even for teachers, grades were the standard for students, and their role was to manage grades. So what role does the Korean entrance examination system play, and what does it mean for me in setting my dreams?
First, the Korean admissions system creates a huge rite of passage in the form of the SAT. As the biggest rite of passage in a country with few resources and a large population, the SAT is very competitive and harsh. Many students prepare for the SAT through private tutoring, and it is not an exaggeration to say that schools are also SAT preparation centers. Your school work is reflected in your SAT score for university admission, and what you learn in school is the basis for your SAT preparation. The names of students who have gotten into good universities are often seen on banners in front of high school gates. This means that school education emphasizes the transmission of knowledge within the scope of the SAT examination to the exclusion of diverse experiences and character education. In a capitalist system, competition with others is indispensable for advancement in a vested society. Therefore, it becomes the duty of schools and academies to prepare students to become the kind of people that vested interests want.
Second, formal schooling in South Korea does not directly influence students’ “dreams”. Students are educated from the time they enter school with the goal of getting into a university. This goal is perceived and justified by schools as a pathway to economic stability and social recognition. Designing a personal “dream” begins with discovering the true self through a variety of experiences. Only when you realize your perceptions and possibilities can you figure out what you want to do, and that’s how dreams are formed. However, Korean high schools force students to study for the SAT and do not provide them with diverse experiences. In order to know your dream, you need to have a variety of experiences outside of school, but this creates a contradiction that hinders your preparation for the SAT. In this sense, Korean high schools do not play a proper role in the sense of “dream” or “self-actualization” for students.
So far, I have been thinking about how and to what extent Korean education influences Korean students’ dreams. I’ve looked at the emphasis on the SAT rite of passage and the resulting uniformization of education. As an adult who graduated from college, I’m only now figuring out what I want to be through various experiences. However, I hope that the juniors who will enter the workforce will be able to know themselves through various experiences even before college, and become college students who can pursue their dreams formed through these experiences.