CSAT Day: "Hand In Any Smart Glasses You Are Carrying"... Test Invalidated if Caught

Education Ministry Issues Examinee Guidelines... All Electronic Devices Banned
Even Wearing Smart Glasses Will Bar Examinees from Next Year's Test

All electronic devices, including mobile phones, smart glasses, earphones and electronic cigarettes, will be banned from the 2027 College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) on November 19.

CSAT examinees must enter their exam rooms by 8:10 a.m. that day, bringing their admission tickets and identification. At around 8:05 a.m., an announcement will instruct examinees to "hand in any smart glasses they are carrying." Anyone who brings an electronic device into the test center must hand it in. If an examinee is found carrying a device without having submitted it, this will be treated as cheating and their test will be invalidated.

On November 9, the Ministry of Education announced the "2027 CSAT Examinee Guidelines," which include these requirements.

Examinees must attend the preliminary meeting on November 18, the day before the test, to receive their admission tickets and other important information. They should also check in advance the location of the test center listed on their admission tickets to avoid going to the wrong venue.

On November 19, the day of the test, examinees must bring their admission tickets and valid photo identification and enter their designated test centers by 8:10 a.m. Mobile identification is not accepted.

If an examinee loses their admission ticket, they can have it reissued by going to the test administration office at the test center by 8 a.m. on test day with one copy of the same photo attached to their application and their identification. Even if they do not have a photo, they can report to the test administration office to receive a temporary admission ticket.

All electronic devices are prohibited at test centers, including mobile phones, smart glasses and other smart devices, tablet PCs, earphones with communication (Bluetooth) capabilities, and electronic cigarettes.

Anyone who brings an electronic device to the test center must hand it in as instructed by an invigilator during the collection period before the first test session begins. The device can be retrieved after the test ends. If an examinee is caught continuing to carry a device without submitting it, this will be treated as cheating and their test will be invalidated.

Only analog watches with no payment or communication (such as Bluetooth) capabilities and no electronic display (such as LCD or LED) are allowed.

Wearing smart glasses or other smart devices during the test will be considered use of the device, and the examinee will be disqualified from both this year's CSAT and next year's test.

In particular, for planned and deliberate cheating using smart glasses or similar devices, the authorities will actively pursue legal action, including filing complaints and requesting investigations, so that offenders may face not only sanctions such as having their test invalidated but also criminal penalties under relevant laws and regulations.

Examinees must also cooperate when invigilators check for smart glasses and other smart devices. These checks are conducted to ensure fair test administration, and ordinary glasses are unrelated to cheating. Examinees can therefore remain calm and follow the invigilators' instructions.

Failure to take the Korean History section in the fourth session will invalidate the test and result in the entire score report not being issued. All examinees must therefore take the Korean History section in the fourth session.

For the Social Studies and Science sections that follow in the fourth session, examinees must take the subjects in the order they selected and place on their desks only the question booklet for the subject scheduled at that time. Examinees who chose to take two subjects in the fourth-session elective section must be especially careful not to change or fill in answers for the first subject, which has already ended, during the time allocated for the second subject. Doing so will be treated as cheating and invalidate the test.

Examinees must use only a black computer-marking pen on their answer sheets. They must also write the handwriting verification statement in black computer-marking pen. Examinees should be careful, as they will be responsible for any disadvantage resulting from writing answers in pencil or with a mechanical pencil, or from marking multiple answers.

Education Minister Choi Gyojin said, "To ensure that all your hard work does not go to waste because of an unfortunate incident, I urge examinees to carefully review the guidelines before the test and not to bring any electronic devices."

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