The current count is four students accepted to Seoul National University: two in Engineering and two in Business.
Students have been contacting me late, so I expect the number to keep rising. There are later admissions results too.
It feels as though I now have former students in almost every department at SNU, haha.
The post below was written after I received acceptance messages from three students.
Hello, this is JjangJi. Three of my students have been accepted to Seoul National University. Congratulations to them! It's difficult to ask directly: if someone was rejected, asking 'How did it go?' could really hurt. So I couldn't bring myself to ask and simply waited. Then, one by one, they contacted me: 'Teacher, I got in.' It seems that two or three of my students get into SNU every year. Even when they don't message me first, their friends tell me who got in, haha, so I hear the news quite quickly.
The first student, from BIS in Ho Chi Minh City, got into Engineering. They had an IB score of 42 and, if I remember correctly, 5s in two AP subjects, including Chemistry. I can never bring myself to ask for every last detail, haha. This was a very efficient student. Studying hard and studying efficiently are different things. This student wasn't someone who studied relentlessly, but they were bright enough to use their time very efficiently. I thought they would get into SNU, so I'm glad they did.
The second student got into Business and told me they had an IB score of 44. They had an AP Chemistry result, but I don't know how many AP scores of 5 they had overall. This student was also from BIS in Ho Chi Minh City. BIS is one of Vietnam's leading international schools, and competition there is fierce. Staying near the top and getting into SNU Business is an impressive achievement. When I taught them Chemistry, their studying didn't particularly stand out to me, but they were good-looking, haha. They were also steady and straightforward, so I'm very happy to see this result. Business admission isn't just about high grades. It takes leadership, problem-solving, analytical ability, and an international outlook. I heard that this student had prepared through volunteering, projects, presentation competitions, and many other activities both inside and outside school.
The third student also got into Engineering, with a perfect IB score of 45 and a nearly perfect SAT score. Their international school is so unusual that even naming the country could identify them, so I can't say more. It's in a small European country. In that distinctive environment, they prepared largely on their own, feeling isolated but staying strong. They relied on tutors and kept asking what they needed to prepare. I repeatedly discussed their SNU department choices with them—where to apply and where not to apply—and persuaded them to choose Engineering. At first, they had chosen an especially ambitious department. I remember saying, 'You can try, but your future is at stake—isn't that risky?'
Honestly, I wanted to ask these students every detail: how many APs they took, how many volunteer hours they completed, and how many competitions they entered.
What these three have in common isn't simply good grades or intelligence. Their results came from effort, careful self-management, and constant reflection and growth. I was reminded once again that admission to SNU doesn't happen by accident. These students are remarkable, and I want to keep cheering them on.
Some people think that SNU admission is automatic if you qualify for the route for students who completed all 12 school years overseas.
I have more than 10 students eligible for that route, and only three of them got in at the point when I wrote this. It is definitely not easy. If you aim too high, getting into SNU can become almost impossible. After watching this for many years, I think applicants sometimes need to lower their ambitions a little. Of course, someone might get into an extraordinary program such as SNU Medicine, but that is incredibly difficult.
Thank you.