Gov't plans full scholarships for all regional national university first-year students next year

The government plans to provide full-ride scholarships to all first year students entering regional national universities beginning as early as next year, the Ministry of Education announced on Wednesday. 

The plan, part of efforts to curb the outflow of talent from provincial areas and promote balanced regional development, was outlined during a policy briefing to President Lee Jae Myung at the Blue House by Education Minister Choi Kyo-jin.

“We plan to significantly expand state-funded scholarships for students at regional national universities, while also increasing support for high-achieving students enrolling at regional private universities through a revamped regional talent scholarship program,” Choi said.

Under the proposal, all first year students admitted to the country's 30 national universities outside the greater Seoul area — about 60,000 students each year — would receive scholarships covering their full tuition starting next year.

“The program could be funded with an additional 100 billion won [$70 million] because many students at regional national universities already receive income-based national scholarships,” said a ministry official.

The ministry is also considering expanding the program to cover all undergraduate students, from first year students to seniors. An additional annual budget of about 400 billion won would be required to do so.

The ministry plans to finalize and announce details later this month after consultations with budget authorities.

It also plans to expand eligibility for the regional talent scholarship, which is currently available only to graduates of high schools outside the greater Seoul area who enroll in regional private universities. Under the proposal, students from the greater Seoul area attending regional private universities would also become eligible.

The proposal, however, has drawn criticism from private universities.

“It’s unfair to support only national universities when regional private universities are facing similar financial challenges,” said Hwang In-seong, secretary general of the Korean Association of Private University Presidents.

An official at a private university in Seoul echoed the criticism.

“It’s no different from reverse discrimination only to give benefits to students at regional national universities, even though living expenses and tuition are generally higher for students attending school in Seoul,” an official at a private university in Seoul said.

Separately, President Lee expressed support for ongoing discussions on reforming the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), criticizing the current admissions and evaluation system.

"Education that simply asks students to choose the correct answer from multiple-choice questions is something even a basic computer can easily do," Lee said. "Continuing to produce standardized people is not education — it is destroying education."

The National Education Commission reported that it is preparing a college admissions reform plan that would introduce essay-based questions to the CSAT and school exams while shifting all subjects to an absolute grading system.

A draft proposal is expected by October, with the final plan scheduled for confirmation in March next year following public consultations.

The Ministry of Education also said it plans to introduce an AI-based assessment support system in schools by 2029 to facilitate the adoption of essay-type evaluations.

BY KIM MIN-SANG, MOON HEE-CHUL [shin.woojin@joongang.co.kr]