South Korea's Top Universities Rejected 45 Applicants Over Past Bullying Records
For the first time, South Korea's leading universities refused 45 applicants with excellent grades because they had past bullying records. A year later, that number has more than tripled.
Six of the country's 10 flagship national universities turned the students away in the 2025 admissions cycle, according to Korea JoongAng Daily. Kyungpook National University in Daegu rejected the most, 22. Pusan National University rejected 8, Kangwon and Jeonbuk National Universities 5 each, Gyeongsang National University 3, and Seoul National University 2, based on scores from the national college entrance exam. The other four flagship schools, Chonnam, Jeju, Chungnam and Chungbuk, rejected no one on this basis, because they only weighed bullying records in limited tracks such as student athlete admissions.
The crackdown followed public anger over the son of former prosecutor Chung Sun-sin. He changed high schools because of bullying and was still admitted to Seoul National University, the most selective school in the country, with only a two-point deduction on his entrance exam score. Seoul National has deducted up to two points for school transfers or expulsions since 2014, and the case convinced many South Koreans that the penalty was far too small to matter.
The numbers are now much bigger. In early admissions for 2026, 10 leading state universities rejected 162 applicants with school bullying records, about 90 percent of the 180 who had them, according to data released by the office of Democratic Party Rep. Jin Sun-mee and reported by The Korea Herald. Gangwon National University rejected 37, Gyeongsang 29, Kyungpook 28, Jeonbuk 18, Chungnam 15, Chonnam 14, Chungbuk 13, Pusan 7 and Jeju 1. Seoul National reported no applicants with such records in that round. The total was expected to rise once regular admissions results came out. Kyungpook's 22 rejections in 2025 made it the toughest school on bullying records that year, and it rejected 28 more in the 2026 early round. For many families, the numbers confirmed that the new rules are being enforced, not just announced.
Starting in 2026, every university in South Korea must deduct points from applicants with school violence records, no matter which admission track they use. In a country where entrance to a top university can shape a career for life, that makes a bullying record one of the most costly marks a high school student can carry.
The policy has critics. Some educators say it turns universities into moral gatekeepers and punishes teenagers years after the fact. It has also changed how bullying cases are fought: more students accused of bullying are hiring lawyers and filing administrative lawsuits to overturn school disciplinary decisions before they apply, which teachers say is making disputes in schools more bitter.
Supporters see it the other way. They say victims have watched bullies move on without consequences for years, and that the rejections finally send the message that how students treat others counts as much as their test scores.
Should American colleges check bullying records too? YES OR NO?
