Lee Ki-jung, chairman of the Korean Council for University Education, acknowledged that the system failure during applications for early admissions to universities for the 2027 academic year was "a foreseeable event," and conceded that the outsourcing firm handling applications had responded complacently. Uway Apply, the contractor, countered the suggestion that it had neglected system management, saying it has invested about 1 billion won ($730,000) a year in its systems.
At a parliamentary audit by the National Assembly's Education Committee on the 12th, Rep. Ahn Gyu-bae of the Democratic Party of Korea noted that errors had occurred the day before the application system broke down and asked whether the incident "was foreseeable rather than a sudden development." Lee answered, "Yes." Lee also agreed with the criticism that the contractor had been complacent about the possibility of a system failure.
Uway Apply's system management also came under scrutiny. Sung Yoon-seok, chief executive of Uway Apply, who appeared as a witness, admitted that the company did not conduct load testing to prepare for traffic surges after updating its operating system in June and July this year. But responding to criticism that the company had spent money on securing contracts with universities while neglecting system upgrades, Sung said, "Application processing generates about 8 billion won in annual revenue, and we have invested 2 billion won over the past two years to improve stability."
Lawmakers also argued that the university application system, which relies on a private contractor, should be converted into a public system. Rep. Kang Kyung-sook of the Rebuilding Korea Party pointed out that Uway Apply had withheld some materials, citing personal information and contractual issues, and stressed the need to build a public system. Sung said, "The full log data contains applicants' personal information, and the terms of our contracts with universities cannot be submitted without the universities' consent." He added, "Over 27 years of building application processing in the private sector, we have put the public interest first," and said, "We have never once held applicants hostage in providing this service."
The Ministry of Education said it would review ways to strengthen the public nature of the system. Seol Se-hoon, head of the ministry's planning and coordination office, said, "We will confirm the facts through a special investigation, then draw up comprehensive measures to improve the system and report them to the National Assembly."
The council is also considering additional remedies for applicants affected by the system failure. Lee said, "Once the final list of successful applicants is out, we will look at how those who filed late applications fared and work out a specific Plan A and Plan B." The council said it would also revise its manual for responding to system failures, its guidelines on disclosing competition ratios and its applicant numbering system ahead of the regular admissions round.