Semiconductor Contract Departments See Record Popularity, Rivaling Medical Schools

The average entrance exam score for semiconductor contract departments, which guarantee "employment tickets" at Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, has surpassed that of Seoul National University's College of Natural Sciences.

According to Jongro Academy, the average score for the Korean, mathematics, and inquiry sections of the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) for successful regular admission applicants to semiconductor departments at universities in Seoul—including Yonsei, Korea, Hanyang, Sungkyunkwan, and Sogang universities—was 96.2 points for the 2026 academic year.

This figure slightly exceeds the average score of successful applicants to Seoul National University's College of Natural Sciences (95.8 points).

By university, Hanyang University's Department of Semiconductor Engineering had the highest average at 98.0 points.

It was followed by Korea University (97.0 points), Sungkyunkwan University (96.0 points), and Sogang and Yonsei universities (95.0 points each).

Categorized by the contracting company, the average score for departments with hiring agreements with SK Hynix (Korea, Sogang, and Hanyang universities) was 96.7 points, which is 1.2 points higher than those with agreements with Samsung Electronics (Yonsei and Sungkyunkwan universities, 95.5 points).

It has been observed that semiconductor contract departments are closing the gap with medical schools, which attract the top-tier students in the natural sciences.

The average regular admission score for medical schools in provincial areas for the 2026 academic year was 97.2 points, which is lower than Hanyang University's Department of Semiconductor Engineering and similar to the level of Korea University's Department of Semiconductor Engineering.

The difference is also not significant compared to the average admission scores for medical schools in the Gyeongin region (99.0 points) and the Seoul region (98.8 points).

The college admissions industry suggests that in the 2026-2027 academic year regular admissions, when the number of medical school recruits increases due to the introduction of the regional doctor system, semiconductor contract departments could potentially surpass the average admission scores of medical schools.

Lim Sung-ho, CEO of Jongro Academy, analyzed, "It is noteworthy which path students will choose if they are accepted into both a semiconductor contract department and a medical school," adding, "Depending on their choices, there could be significant changes in the admission cut-offs for both contract departments and medical schools."

He further predicted that "given the current situation, if students are accepted into both a contract department and an engineering department at Seoul National University, more students may choose the contract department," suggesting that the admission cut-off for Seoul National University's College of Natural Sciences could drop further than the previous year.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.