Jang Donghyuk: "University Admissions Fairness Undermined by Application System Failure... Education Minister Must Resign"

"No Plan B Despite Predictable Human Error"

People Power Party Forms University Admissions Fairness Task Force Directly Under Leader

Jang Donghyuk, leader of the People Power Party, has called for the resignation of Minister of Education Choi Gyojin in connection with the college admission early application system failure, stating, "The government neither has the will nor the capability to come up with a proper remedy."

At an emergency meeting held at the National Assembly on the 17th to address the failure of the college early application system, Jang stated, "If the fairness of the college application process is compromised and the outcome of applicants is affected, how could the state possibly offer compensation? The first step should be for the Minister of Education to take responsibility and step down."

Jang Donghyuk, leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at an emergency meeting on the college admission early application system failure held at the National Assembly on the 17th. Photo by Yonhap News

He emphasized, "Incidents that should never occur in Korea are being repeated. These are cases where it is almost impossible to find a post-facto remedy, and even if a remedy is provided, it cannot restore things to their original state."

He further criticized, "There should have at least been a 'Plan B' in place regarding how to respond to server failures and when to publicly release the competition rates, but the government has made no preparations whatsoever."

Jang also pointed out that this year was expected to see a higher number of test-takers compared to previous years, and that similar problems had occurred even the day before the failure. He argued, "This was a preventable man-made disaster, yet the government, the Ministry of Education, and the service companies all failed to respond appropriately despite the signs."

Im Ija, policy chief of the party, added, "Above all, fairness and equity are the foundation of the admissions process. Any measure should not disadvantage other applicants or provoke new controversies regarding fairness." The People Power Party plans to form a "College Admission Fairness Task Force" under Jang’s direct supervision to review cases of damage and measures for preventing a recurrence.

Kim Hee-jung, chairperson of the National Assembly’s Education Committee, said, "During the Education Committee session the previous day, the Ministry of Education kept repeating that they 'followed the manual.' They evaded responsibility by relying on an incomplete manual." She went on to say, "Many citizens are witnessing the nation’s trust capital continuously erode."

Parents and applicants who attended the meeting demanded a full investigation into the cancellation of applications submitted after 6 p.m. and the added rounds of acceptance. They expressed concerns, saying, "Applications were still being accepted even after the final competition rates had been publicly released, creating information asymmetry. As a result, applicants who submitted their forms within the designated timeframe were put at a disadvantage."

On September 11, a system failure at the company responsible for handling application submissions prevented some applicants from completing their early college admission process. Subsequently, some universities extended the submission period and publicly disclosed their competition rates in advance, which sparked further controversy over the fairness of the admissions process.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.