29.9% of 'freshmen in Seoul' come from Seoul high schools... Lowest in the last 6 years

Among freshmen at four-year universities in Seoul, the proportion of Seoul high school graduates fell below 30%, the lowest in the past six years.

As a result of Jongno Academy's analysis of the status of students admitted to 224 universities (general universities, industrial universities, and universities) across the country published on the University Information website on the 8th, 29.9% (27,463 students) of the new students at 4-year universities (43 universities) located in Seoul in the 2026 school year were from Seoul high schools.

The proportion of new students from Seoul at universities in the Seoul area has continued to decline over the past five years. It decreased every year from 32.9% in 2021 to 32.5% in 2022, 31.8% in 2023, 31.2% in 2024, and 30.4% in 2025. This year (29.9%) is the lowest figure in the last six years.

Seoul National University, Yonsei University, and Korea University are also seeing a decline in the proportion of new students from Seoul high schools.

Of the 13,609 freshmen at these three universities this year, 31.4% were from Seoul high schools. It was 0.8 percentage points (p) lower than last year (32.2%). This is the lowest level in the past five years.

By university, Seoul National University had the highest rate at 35.7%. Among the 3,811 freshmen at Seoul National University, 1,359 were from Seoul high schools. Yonsei University had 1,405 out of 4,477 students (31.4%), and Korea University had 1,511 out of 5,321 students (28.4%).

Comparing the 10 major universities in Seoul, the proportion of graduates from Seoul high schools was highest, followed by Seoul National University, Yonsei University, Hanyang University (30.8%), Ewha Womans University (29.9%), and Korea University.

This was followed by Sungkyunkwan University (28.3%), Chung-Ang University (25.6%), Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (25.5%), Sogang University (23.5%), and Kyung Hee University (22.9%). In seven universities, excluding Seoul National University, Yonsei University, and Hanyang University, the ratio of graduates from Seoul high schools was below 30%.

On the other hand, 6.8% (14,805 people) from Seoul entered local universities this year, which is also the lowest figure in the past six years.

Lim Seong-ho, CEO of Jongno Academy, analyzed, “In a situation where the entrance exam structure is concentrated on universities located in the Seoul area, it can be seen that students in the Seoul area are inevitably choosing to retake the exam as it has become difficult to advance to universities close to their residence.”

He continued, "As of the most recently announced 2025 school year, the percentage of high school seniors in the Seoul area entering a four-year university was 46.2% (based on general high schools), which was the lowest among the 17 cities and provinces across the country."