A total of 8,305 medical students nationwide have been failed, and 46 have been expelled. Expelled medical students cannot return to school. The vacancies are expected to be filled through transfers. There are observations that more engineering talent will flock to medical schools as they admit transfer students on an unprecedented scale.
The Ministry of Education announced on the afternoon of the 9th the status of failures and expulsions submitted by 40 medical schools across the country. 43% of all medical students (19,475 students) have been failed, and 0.2% have been expelled. The Ministry of Education noted, "We will support each university to fill vacancies through transfers."
The scale of transfers to medical schools nationwide has been in the range of 50 students per year over the past three years (2022–2024 academic years). During this period, medical schools have seen annual vacancies of 170 to 200, including voluntary withdrawals and expulsions, and some of these have been filled through transfers. The scale of transfers has been determined by factors such as school size and the quality of educational conditions (grades 1 to 6). The rest were filled through readmission.
However, this time, all vacancies for medical students are expected to be filled through transfers. This means that they plan to select students solely through transfers without readmission. As a result, the scale of transfers to medical schools is expected to increase. A government official stated, "Universities have requested to select 100% transfer students for the remaining seats regardless of educational conditions, and we are reviewing this request."
Medical schools are divided into 2 years of pre-medical study and 4 years of medical study. Transfer to medical schools typically occurs when students who have completed their second year of university undergo documentation, internal exams (in chemistry, biology, etc.), and interviews to enroll as first-year medical students. Sometimes, there is a condition that credits in chemistry and biology must be completed at the previous institution, which favors engineering talent.
With the increase in vacancies in medical schools, there is a projection that top-tier engineering college students who narrowly missed passing medical school entrance exams due to one or two questions may challenge for transfers. The government and universities believe that if a basic transfer plan is established by October, they can fill the vacancies for medical students by early next year.