Seoul: South Korea slowed to a near halt today as nearly 550,000 students sat for the Suneung, the country’s notoriously long and high-stakes college entrance exam.
Often described as the world’s longest and most intense national test, the Suneung runs for over 12 hours and shapes not just university admissions, but future job prospects, earning potential, and even social mobility.
Across major cities, morning commutes were quieter than usual. Shops stayed shut, aircraft takeoffs were delayed to limit noise, and families gathered outside test centres to send off students. For many households, this is the most important day of the year.
The exam includes about 200 questions across Korean, mathematics, English, Korean history, and an elective from social or natural sciences or vocational studies. Students also write an additional section on a second language and Hanja, the classical Chinese characters still used in Korean texts. The test begins around 8.40 am and ends at 5.40 pm, with short rest windows but no dedicated meal breaks.
For visually impaired candidates, the exam stretches even longer. They receive 1.7 times the standard writing time, extending the marathon to nearly 13 hours. Their braille booklets can run up to 100 pages per paper, compared with the 16-page booklet used by other students. Some finish as late as 9.48 pm.
This year, 554,174 applicants registered for the exam, an increase of more than 31,000 from last year and the highest number of candidates seen in seven years. Among them are high school seniors, recent graduates, and a small group of visually impaired students. Education authorities recorded 99 candidates with low vision and 12 with severe visual impairments in the previous exam cycle.
For South Korea, the Suneung remains more than a test. It is a national moment of silence, sacrifice, and hope, as families and communities pause to support the next generation on their most defining academic day.
