In South Korea, the perception that educational background is important for a future career is dominant. Therefore, university admission is bound to be controversial. Universities hope to find talented students suitable for receiving the education provided by them. They achieve this goal by utilizing various entrance examination systems. Therefore, the performance in the standardized tests for students entering universities has become a criterion for determining the “prestigiousness.” The quality of education provided by schools and the public perception of universities are important not only for the freshmen but also for sophomores and above and graduates, who must prove themselves through their academic background.

In February and March, numerous eyes peruse the results of university entrance exams. The same pattern is being repeated on campus this year: Which university selected students who performed well in the exam? Admission for which department showed a high competition rate? However, this year, a different controversy has emerged; that is, this is the first year that students who took the “integrated Korean Scholarly Assessment Test (K-SAT)” would enter university.

Even before this year, some students submitted “cross-application” between humanities and social science departments and natural science and engineering departments. However, this year, many students who took the integrated K-SAT passed the university through cross-application. Cross-application refers to “the application of students who took the K-SAT by selecting natural science and engineering subjects to the humanities and social science departments” or “the application of students who took the K-SAT by selecting humanities and social science subjects to the natural science and engineering departments.” This time, over 50 percent of the successful candidates turned out to be the ones who cross-applied from natural science and engineering departments to the humanities and social science departments major. Ironically, “humanities and social science departments” students are rare in “humanities and social science departments” colleges.

Student A, who was a former natural science and engineering departments student and cross-applied for the humanities and social science departments department, said, “I am ashamed that I came to the college with a lower score than other natural science and engineering departments students.” This answer is based on the perception that “natural science and engineering departments” students are smarter than “humanities and social science departments” students.

The distinction between humanities and social science departments and natural science and engineering departments in Korea was influenced by Japan. During the Japanese Colonial Period, Japan’s education system, in which high schools were divided into humanities and social science departments and natural science and engineering departments, was accepted in Korea, and has continued to this day. However, after liberation, there was a separation between the courses, but students studied all subjects. However, as the university entrance examination system was set up, it became more efficient to only study subjects favorable to the exam. Thus, students were distinguished between those who study humanities and social science departments or natural science and engineering departments. However, it has been consistently criticized that studying disproportionately, without learning social studies or sciences, does not fit the purpose of education. In addition, as convergence talents with humanities’ imagination and scientific creativity are needed in the era of the 4th industrial revolution, the need for integrated education has also increased. Therefore, the curriculum has been revised to grant integrated education to students who took the 2022 K-SAT.

However, many point out that integrated education is a vanity. This is because humanities and social science departments and natural science and engineering departments courses maintained the system of elective subjects. In math courses, “Calculus” and “Probability and Statistics” were organized separately. There is a phenomenon in which students who apply for the natural science and engineering departments of universities choose Calculus, and students who want to enter the humanities and social science departments choose Probability and Statistics. In addition, universities insist on selecting humanities and social science departments and natural science and engineering departments students separately. On the one hand, top-ranking universities in Seoul require Calculus as a qualification for applying for them. The universities have instructed natural science and engineering department students to take the exams on “Calculus” or “Geometry” in mathematics and two science elective subjects. On the other hand, the humanities and social science department courses were not qualified as elective subjects. As a result, natural science and engineering department students can apply for humanities and social science departments, but the way for humanities and social science department students to enter natural science and engineering departments majors has been blocked.

The distinction between humanities and social science departments and natural science and engineering departments in Korea is a phenomenon that stands out because of the separation in university entrance exams rather than in the educational field. Therefore, it is unclear whether the integration of humanities and social science departments and natural science and engineering departments without a fundamental transformation of the education curriculum and university entrance examination system will achieve the desired results. Instead, the confusion among students may increase, the gap between the upper and middle ranks may widen, and the conflict between humanities and social science departments and natural science and engineering departments may intensify.

It is reasonable to point out that the separation of humanities and social science departments and natural science and engineering departments is anachronistic, which solidifies the boundaries between the streams, instead of integrating them. The educational integration policy was employed to solve this problem. However, to operate an education system suitable to the purpose of education according to academics, it is necessary not only to change educational policy but to look back on what happens.