The official mechanical pencil color given to test takers for the 2026 College Scholastic Ability Test was confirmed to be "light peach."
According to the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation (KICE) on the 13th, the CSAT pencils provided to test takers at test sites nationwide that day were click-type pencils in a bright peach color. The lead was 0.5 mm HB black, with five leads inserted per pencil.
KICE does not disclose the pencil color until the day of the CSAT each year. This is to block the possibility of obtaining a similar-colored pencil before the test and modifying it into a cheating tool such as a camera or communication device.
This system was introduced after large-scale cheating was uncovered in the 2005 CSAT. Since the 2006 CSAT, identical official pencils have been provided to test takers, and bringing personal writing instruments (mechanical pencils, ballpoint pens, etc.) into test sites has been prohibited.
This year as well, posts appeared on online communities before the test saying, "I don't like this year's CSAT pencil color," and "It's a light orange tone." In particular, on the 10th, some admissions forums carried a photo presumed to be the CSAT pencil, but as in previous years, there was no photo leak on the day before the test.
A KICE official said, "We strengthened pencil security in consultation with provincial and metropolitan education offices," adding, "Thanks to thorough management by each test district, there was almost no information leakage."
KICE procured a total of 888,000 CSAT pencils and 32,060 tubes of lead this year. A budget of about 4.65 billion won was allocated.