ABSTRACT
Almost half of the total population of eighteen-year-olds in Korea in 1992 entered higher education. Despite the rapid growth of higher education enrollments (215 times larger in 1992 than in 1945, when Korea gained independence from the Japanese), Koreans seem still to be engaged in a battle over education. In 1992, the university entrance examination sheets were stolen on the eve of the examination, an event considered one of the biggest disasters since the Korean War (19501953). A year later, however, an even bigger scandal erupted when it was revealed that 102 students had been admitted to four prestigious universities through various illegal means. A host of people connected to the illegal admissions procedures (including admissions brokers, presidents and officers of universities, high school principals, teachers, parents, and students) were indicted. This scandal was the top story for a month in every newspaper and media broadcast. Because of the public outcry, the government was forced to admit that admissions irregularities had occurred in other years as well. We view the extreme demand for higher education in Korea and the accompanying social and psychological pressure on young people and their families as being analogous to a war for education.
