As score reports for the 2026 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) were distributed, attention is turning to what perfect scorers will do next. Since the integration of the humanities and science tracks in the CSAT, seven out of 10 perfect scorers have gone to medical school, cementing the formula of "CSAT perfect score = medical school."
The Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation (KICE) said on the 5th that "there are five perfect scorers this year, including four current students and one graduate." By elective subject, one was in social studies and four in science. A perfect CSAT score requires perfect scores in all sections—Korean, math, and inquiry—as well as in English and Korean history, which are graded on an absolute scale.
Since the CSAT was introduced in 1993, there have been about 250 perfect scorers. The first perfect scorer emerged in the 1999 CSAT. The person was Oh Seung-eun, who entered Seoul National University's College of Natural Sciences in the Department of Physics at the top of the class and finished the undergraduate program in three years and six months. Afterward, Oh earned a doctorate in biophysics at MIT and has been serving as an assistant professor in the Department of Biophysics at UC San Diego since July last year.
In recent years, the tilt toward medical schools has been clear. Over the five years through last year, 14 of 22 perfect scorers chose medical schools. Narrowing the period to 2022, when the integrated CSAT began, through last year, 12 of 16, or 75%, applied to medical schools. Excluding the two in the humanities during the same period, the rate is about 85.7%. Most of them enrolled in Seoul National University's premedical program.
This year's perfect scorers show a similar pattern. Lee Ha-jin, a third-year student at Jeonju Hanil High School, applied to medical schools including Seoul National University. At a press conference that day, Lee said, "Since childhood I have suffered from asthma and rhinitis, so I naturally became interested in becoming a doctor," adding, "If I enter medical school, I want to become an internal medicine physician, which is the most important for saving people."
Another perfect scorer this year, Wang Jeong-geon, a third-year student at Gwangnam High School in Seoul, also chose Seoul National University's medical school as the first choice. Wang said, "I applied because I want to learn not only medical skills but also the spirit of medicine."
There are, however, cases of choosing departments other than medical school. Of the 11 perfect scorers on the 2025 CSAT, two headed to Seoul National University's College of Engineering. Eo Jae-hee entered the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Seo Jang-hyeop entered the School of Computer Science and Engineering.
This year as well, perfect scorer Choi Jang-woo, a third-year student at Seoseok High School in Gwangju, is aiming to enter Seoul National University's Department of Economics.