South Korea braces for annual university entrance exam shutdown

Students waiting for the start of the annual college entrance examinations at an exam hall in Seoul, South Korea, on Nov 17, 2022. — AFP

SEOUL (Bloomberg): Large parts of South Korea will come to a standstill on Thursday (Nov 16) as students nationwide prepare to take their all-important university entrance exams, in a country where academic success is seen as paramount.

As more than 500,000 seniors take the equivalent of the SAT from 8.40am to 5.45pm local time, businesses will delay their openings to prevent disruption to students going to test centers. Trading in stocks and foreign exchange will be delayed by an hour to 10am and the stock market will close an hour later than normal. Police will be deployed to assist any students running late for their exams.