Regional doctor admissions begin as applicants seek answers on school and residence rules

South Korea’s first early admissions round for the 2027 regional doctor program begins Sept. 7, with applicants facing detailed rules over where they attended middle and high school.

Thirty-one universities outside Seoul will recruit students in the round, excluding CHA University’s medical school and graduate medical school, which completed applications on a separate schedule last month. The Health Ministry and Education Ministry issued a guide answering questions from students and parents before admissions began.

The program selects students from regional communities at the entry stage of medical school and supports tuition, dormitory and housing costs. In return, graduates must serve for 10 years in an assigned mandatory-service area. Unlike existing regional-talent admissions, the program includes a service obligation and financial support.

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The program selects students who grew up in the regions from the medical-school admission stage and supports all costs needed for medical education, including tuition, dormitory and housing expenses, so that they can continue through education, training, service and settlement in the region.

Students follow the same degree and curriculum as other medical students, but receive a conditional license after passing the national examination. The license becomes a regular medical license after 10 years of service. Failure to complete the obligation can lead to repayment of support and suspension or cancellation of the license.

The program will select 490 students, including 458 through early admissions. A total of 359 places will use smaller medical-service regions, while 131 will use broader regional groupings. The smaller regions combine several cities and counties, while broader regions combine multiple provinces and metropolitan areas. Applicants generally must complete their middle and high school education within the relevant grouping. Students cannot qualify if they attend middle school in Daejeon and finish high school in Jeonju, because the schools fall in different broad regions. Applicants who earned qualifications through the high-school equivalency exam, or graduated from certain separately established schools such as gifted or international schools, are also excluded.

Selection through a broad region does not guarantee service in a metropolitan city. A student selected from the Daejeon, Sejong, Chungnam and Chungbuk grouping could instead serve in a designated medical-service region in Chungnam or Chungbuk. Universities decide whether applicants may apply to multiple tracks, but regional-doctor applications count toward the six-application limit for early admissions. Mandatory service normally excludes military duty, extended illness, childcare or sick leave, unrelated research and training. Specialist training in designated essential-care fields within the service area counts in full, while other specialist training and internships count for half.

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The regional and broader-region selection ratios are 70% and 30%, respectively.