A Fad or the New Norm for Student Access Today? Evaluating Enrollment Outcomes of Holistic Admissions in South Korea

The worldwide adoption of holistic admissions in higher education is a recent phenomenon, inspired by elements originally present in the U.S. system. While holistic admissions have been rooted in the Korean higher education system since its adoption, now it is also faced with burgeoning debates over their fairness and impact on student access. This study, therefore, examines the effect of holistic admissions on the enrollment patterns of students from diverse backgrounds. Using data obtained from the Higher Education Statistics Survey, and employing heterogeneity-robust difference-in-differences estimation strategies, this study examines whether the introduction of this new admissions program effectively promoted student access. The results illustrate that the adoption of holistic admissions has dynamic treatment effects that vary based on the timeline relative to adoption and government subsidy status. Subsidized adopters show a statistically significant increase in all outcomes a few years post-policy adoption, while unsubsidized adopters demonstrate a more delayed effect. Moreover, although holistic admissions increased the share of disadvantaged students, it resulted in a higher surge in international student enrollment. The results from this study reflected that the consistent implementation of holistic admissions over a sustained period can bring about intended outcomes from the institutions adopting holistic admissions.