'The next 100 days will decide your grade' — strategy for the CSAT's final stretch

Tuesday marks 100 days until the 2027 College Scholastic Ability Test, or CSAT. Admissions experts are advising students to use the remaining time to sharpen their study strategies based on whether they plan to pursue early admissions or regular admissions.

Students considering early admissions should first assess whether they can meet the minimum CSAT score requirements set by their target universities. Among the top 15 universities in Seoul, most programs under the school record-based admissions track apply such minimum requirements — with a few exceptions, including Konkuk University and Dongguk University.

Minimum CSAT requirements also apply to certain comprehensive admissions programs, including those at Seoul National University, Yonsei University, Korea University's academic excellence track, Hanyang University's recommendation track, Chung-Ang University's growth talent track, Ewha Womans University's document-based track and Hongik University.

Because required ratings vary by university and program, students need to confirm the standards at their target schools and concentrate their efforts on subjects where they have the best chance of meeting those thresholds. Jongno Hagwon advised that "if meeting the minimum CSAT requirement for early admissions is an absolute priority, students need to invest intensively in their strategic subjects."

The final CSAT mock exam, scheduled for Sept. 2, will also serve as a key benchmark for early admissions strategy. Students should use their preliminary results from the September mock exam to gauge their prospects for regular admissions, then set a floor for the early admissions schools they apply to.

Kim Won-jung, head of admissions strategy at Daesung Hagwon, said students should "check the number of students admitted per program at their target universities and any changes to the admissions format, and take a conservative approach when judging whether they can meet the minimum CSAT requirements." He added that students should "strategically use all six early admissions application slots based on that assessment."

For those targeting regular admissions, it is important to examine how each university weights different CSAT subject areas. The top 15 universities allocate roughly 40 percent of their total enrollment to regular admissions, and the actual number of available seats could increase further if spots go unfilled through early admissions and roll over.

MegaStudy noted that among major universities, many place greater weight on Korean language and mathematics for humanities students, and on mathematics for science students. Studying the subjects a target university emphasizes is the most effective approach, it said.

Students pursuing regular admissions must nonetheless maintain a balanced study load across all CSAT areas — Korean, mathematics, English and elective subjects — right up to exam day. Based on June mock exam results, Jongno Hagwon noted that a difference of just one or two questions in Korean and mathematics can significantly shift a student's percentile ranking and grade, making it essential to sustain study volume until the end.

English also demands attention, as this year's June mock exam followed last year's CSAT in featuring a high level of difficulty. Daesung Hagwon said students should "focus intensively on high-difficulty question types with high error rates, such as blank inference and sentence ordering, and continue practicing reading comprehension to identify the key point within a limited time."