SNU Main Gate
After a Korean programming student won first place at the International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI), Seoul National University (SNU) Computer Science and Engineering professor MUN Byungro spoke out about possible concerns regarding the student’s obstacles in the SNU admissions process in a recent article he published in newspaper Joonang Ilbo.
The IOI is where countries from all over the globe send four national representatives to spend roughly twelve hours over six tasks. This year, the competition was held at Kazakhstan, where there were 327 participants, and the top 27 received gold medals. Rarely in the competition’s history does a contestant solve all tasks correctly, but this year, South Korean student Yoon Jihak came first place with the perfect score. His impressive result prompted a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) professor to offer him a position at the university.
This was not a miraculous first for the student. At a similar international event called Codeforces, which was open for everyone including adults, he came in fourth as a sophomore in high school. Professor Mun refers to him as a “genius” in his article on Yoon.
Professor Mun believes that it is fortunate that this student wants to attend SNU instead of MIT. He recognizes that Yoon’s achievements showcase not only his talent in reading programming language, but also his exceptional mathematic understanding and logical comprehension.
However, despite the great asset Yoon would be to SNU, his resume suggests otherwise. Because of his passion for coding, he could not have dedicated as much time to maintaining his grade point average. In the Korean educational system where school ranking is most important, Yoon does not stand a chance in the first round of admissions. Writing in his personal statement that he participated in the IOI would actually exacerbate his chances.
Professor Mun argues that this is occurring because the Ministry of Education funds SNU. The Ministry of Education places education’s emphasis solely on internal school curriculum and not on outside competitions and tournaments. This virtually gives students like Yoon no chance of proving to admissions that he did not waste three years of high school, but instead poured his energies into programming practice.
Professor Mun believes that SNU has become a school that admits students only based on their documents and stats. He likens the loophole in Korea’s education system to the myth of Prokrustes’s bed. If the limbs are longer than the bed, then the limbs are cut off. If the limbs are shorter than the bed, then the limbs are stretched until they are ripped off. He stoutly states that SNU is taking on an admissions process that needs improvement if it seeks to effectively pick up on talent and weed out competition.
Yoon may appear to be a special case, but there were probably other Yoons who attempted and were rejected by SNU, and there is no doubt that there will continue to be more Yoons in the future.
Historically, SNU has played a paramount role in leading other universities in South Korea to change their admissions process, broadening its focus not just on academic performance but also on personal statements, participation in extracurricular activities that demonstrate exceptional talent. Professor Mun encourages SNU to reassess its admissions process further and improve upon it in order to welcome students like Yoon to become a member of Korea’s academically leading student body, not discourage them.
Written by Ho Jung Annie Hwang, SNU English Editor, amorafranca@gmail.com
Reviewed by Eli Park Sorensen, SNU Professor of Liberal Studies, eps7257@snu.ac.kr