[CSAT D-10] ③ The number of N students approaching 200,000 is ‘the highest ever’… Interested in English difficulty level

The 2027 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), which is about 10 days away, is expected to have the largest number of N test takers (students who take the CSAT multiple times), competing fiercely with high school seniors.

While attention is focused on whether the English section, which sparked controversy over last year's CSAT, will be tested at an appropriate level of difficulty this time, the 'focus phenomenon' of applicants flocking to specific areas such as social studies is also something to keep an eye on in this year's CSAT.

◇ The last CSAT under the current system… “N Aquatic thought, ‘I will definitely finish it this time’”

According to the education community on the 8th, a total of 551,864 people applied for the 2027 CSAT, which will be held on the 19th.

Among them, the number of N students, including graduates and qualification exam students, was 196,473, an increase of about 14,000 from last year (182,277).

This is the largest number of N students in 23 years, surpassing the 2004 CSAT (198,025 students).

Looking at the number of graduates alone, the number is 173,706, the highest in 23 years, and the number of students taking the qualification exam is 22,767, the highest in 32 years.

Jongno Academy, an entrance exam company, estimates that among the graduate applicants, there are about 99,000 'half-students' who enter college and then take the CSAT again.

It is analyzed that the reason why there was a record number of N test takers for this CSAT is because this year is the last year under the current CSAT system and the regional doctor system is being introduced for the first time. Starting next year, the 2028 CSAT will be conducted in the form of an integrated test of liberal arts and science.

N students who have already taken the CSAT at least once are likely to score high, which can be a burden for current students.

Woo Yeon-cheol, head of the Entrance Strategy Research Institute at Jinjinsa, said, "If you look at recent trends, the gap in grades between N-students and current students is gradually narrowing compared to the past. However, it is true that N-students' grades are higher than those of current students, so it will be a burden (for current students)."

Director Woo, however, predicted, “Compared to current students, N students have a stronger belief that ‘I must finish this time.’” He added, “If they are not at the top among N students, the tendency to provide ‘stability support’ in future regular admissions will be stronger than in previous years.”

◇ English level 1: 4.13% in June, 15.5% in September… I don’t think it will be more difficult than last year

The difficulty of the English section, where last year's level 1 rate was only 3.11%, is also attracting attention.

English is an absolute assessment where you get a grade 1 if you get a raw score of 90 points (out of 100) or higher, but the percentage of grade 1 was lower than the relative assessment where you get a grade 1 if you are in the top 4%.

There was a strong backlash from test takers and parents who failed to meet the minimum grade for the CSAT, and Oh Seung-geol, then director of the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation, even resigned.

Kim Moon-hee, the new evaluation institute director, suggested the top 6-10% as the target percentage of level 1 English in this year's CSAT.

However, in the June mock evaluation and the September mock evaluation, which are considered to be a 'scale' for the CSAT, the percentage of level 1 English was 4.13% and 15.5%, respectively, which was more than 10 percentage points, causing confusion among test takers.

The entrance examination industry believes that the English section of this year's CSAT will not be as difficult as last year.

Lim Seong-ho, CEO of Jongno Academy, said, "Last year, the head of the evaluation center was replaced due to 'French-English', so there is a small possibility that English will be difficult this year, and I am concerned that it will be too easy. However, once you get more than 80 points, you will secure a 2nd grade, so English will not be a major variable."

Kim Won-jung, head of Daesung Academy's entrance exam strategy, said, "Because English was too easy in September, the last mock test before the CSAT, I think the questions will be a little difficult," but added, "Even so, the difficulty level will not be as high as last year."

◇ 85% of people stare at satam… Requested, “The pros and cons will be divided based on the level of difficulty, not the number of people taking the test.”

The 'Satam Run', in which test takers focus on social studies (Satam) in the field of inquiry, and the 'Possible Run', where test takers focus on 'probability and statistics' as an elective subject in mathematics, are expected to reach their peak after the introduction of the Unified College Scholastic Ability Test.

In particular, as students in the field of natural sciences chose satam instead of scientific inquiry, the number of people taking the sattam test reached 452,219, but the number of overstudy test takers was only 160,182. Of the total 531,676 test takers, 85.1% took at least one subject.

While the number of people taking the Sattam test increased by 82,969 (11.4%) compared to the previous year, the number of people taking the Science Inquiry (Gwatam) test decreased by 92,734 (28.3%).

In mathematics, subject bias was also evident, with 64.9% of test takers taking 'Probability and Statistics' and 35.1% taking 'Calculus' or 'Geometry'.

In Korean, the percentage of test takers for 'Language and Media' and 'Speech and Writing' were calculated to be 25% and 75%, respectively.

As the number of applicants varies greatly, there are concerns that advantages and disadvantages may arise depending on which area and subject is selected.

Director Woo Yeon-cheol said, "Last year, the test scores were high because the sattam test was difficult, and because of that, the test takers who did the sattam test had an advantage. However, if this year's sattam test was a little easier than previous years, students who took the sattam test could have an advantage, unlike last year. We cannot assume that doing the sattam test will unconditionally benefit them."

CEO Lim Seong-ho also said, "There is a rumor going around among test-takers for some subjects where the number of applicants has decreased significantly (e.g., overtaking) that 'no matter how well you do, you will inevitably lose your standard score,' but this cannot necessarily be generalized. Since the standard score varies depending on the difficulty of each subject, you must do your best to solve the problems until the end."