Applications to regional medical school tracks surge 40% as dental, traditional medicine programs see declines

Applications to regional talent and regional doctor program tracks at provincial medical schools jumped more than 40 percent from last year in the early admissions round for the 2027 academic year, according to new data.

Jongno Academy analyzed early admissions applications to regional talent and regional doctor program tracks at provincial schools offering medicine, dentistry, traditional Korean medicine, pharmacy and veterinary medicine for the 2027 academic year. The analysis found that 27 medical schools received 15,775 applications combined.

That figure jumped by 4,528, or 40.3 percent, from 11,247 the previous year. By contrast, applications to eight provincial dental schools fell 8.5 percent to 2,348.

Applications to 10 traditional Korean medicine schools dropped 7.3 percent to 3,495, while those to 21 pharmacy schools fell 17.4 percent to 5,523 and those to eight veterinary schools declined 13.5 percent to 1,129.

Jongno Academy attributed the trend to the introduction of the regional doctor program, which it said prompted top-tier provincial students to concentrate their applications on medical schools rather than dental, traditional Korean medicine, pharmacy or veterinary programs.

Total applications across all five fields under the regional talent and regional doctor program tracks reached 28,270, up 10.5 percent from 25,573 the previous year. Compared with the 2022 academic year, when 20,284 applications were recorded, the figure has grown 39.4 percent. It is the second highest total over the past six academic years, trailing only the 2025 academic year — when medical school enrollment was expanded — which saw 34,347 applications.

By region, Gwangju, South Jeolla Province and North Jeolla Province recorded the highest combined total at 7,734 applications, followed by Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang Province at 6,668, Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province at 6,371, the Chungcheong provinces at 5,283, Gangwon Province at 1,914 and Jeju at 300.

Based on 994 provincial general high schools, the average number of applications per school stood at 28.4, up from 20.4 in the 2022 academic year. Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province led with an average of 34.1 applications per school, followed by the Honam region at 33.6, the Chungcheong provinces at 28.1 and Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang Province at 23.6.

Im Seong-ho, head of Jongno Academy, said the number of students selected through the regional doctor program at provincial medical schools is set to expand 25.1 percent for the 2028 academic year, rising from 466 this year to 583, with a five-tier internal grade rating system also taking effect. "There could be an even greater concentration of applicants in the regional talent and regional doctor program tracks," he said, adding that top-ranked graduates retaking medical school entrance exams and current students applying in greater numbers could shift the cutoff scores as well.