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it was investigated that more than 2 students enrolled in Seoul National University
took a leave of absence this year without attending for a semester. Most of them seem to be doing it to apply to medical school, and there is concern that this phenomenon will only get worse.

This is reporter Kim Kyung-hee.

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Of the new students who entered Seoul National University in March, 3 students applied for a leave of absence immediately, or 225.3 percent of the total 606,6 new students.

The number of so-called "new students" who take a leave of absence in the first semester of their first year has tripled in just four years, from 2 in 1.

In the case of science and engineering departments such as engineering and natural colleges, the proportion is even higher at 1.2019%, and it is estimated that most of them entered re-study institutes with the goal of entering medical or dental schools.

[Kim Won-joong/Director of Admissions Strategy at Daesung Academy: The top students started from a young age thinking that "the end of my dream is medical school" because of themselves, their parents, and various surroundings....]

The recent trend in favor of medical school is so strong that a survey showed that 70% of parents want their children to go to science school, and half of them want to go to medical school.

The government has eased regulations and supported medical schools and expanded the number of seats in the recruitment-guaranteed contract department to foster talent in high-tech fields, but admissions experts are pessimistic.

Due to the shortage of essential medical personnel such as emergency rooms and pediatrics, the number of medical students is expected to increase by about 4 from the 3 academic year, when high school students are currently entering college, which is expected to fuel the phenomenon of medical school concentration.

[Lee Man-ki/Yu Wei, Director of the Institute for Educational Evaluation: (If there are more recruits), the chances of going to medical school will increase, so the children who have never dreamed of going to medical school, that is, the children who have decided to go to high-tech departments, will also turn to medical school.]

Various measures such as unconventional support and compensation for researchers in high-tech fields and training of medical scientists are being discussed, but the government's concern is that there is no pointed answer.

(Reporting by Kim Se-kyung, Editing by Park Jin-hoon)