Grade 9 exam's 2027 curriculum reform explained

From the 2027 cycle, Korean history is scheduled to move out of the scored Grade 9 written paper and become a separate certificate requirement, met through the existing Korean History Proficiency Test rather than a subject scored on exam day. The remaining four subjects are set to expand from 20 to 25 questions each, according to Korea’s official policy briefing service (정책브리핑, korea.kr).

What exactly is changing in 2027?

Two changes land together. First, Korean history stops being a scored subject inside the written exam and instead becomes a certificate requirement, meaning candidates satisfy it by holding a qualifying result on the Korean History Proficiency Test rather than answering Korean history questions during the timed written paper. Second, to keep the overall paper length broadly similar, the remaining four subjects, Korean language, English, and the two track-specific subjects, expand from 20 questions each to 25 questions each. Both changes are reported together by Korea’s official policy briefing service as part of the same reform package.

Why is Korean history being removed from the scored paper?

The stated rationale, consistent with other recent changes to the Grade 9 exam, is to reduce the memorisation burden on candidates while still requiring genuine knowledge of Korean history, just verified through a separate certificate rather than a timed subject inside the exam itself. This mirrors the direction MPM already took with the Korean and English papers, described in our explainer on exam subjects and format, where the goal was shifting from rote memorisation toward practical, job-relevant testing.

Do I need to hold the Korean History Proficiency Test certificate before

applying, or before the written exam?

The exact timing requirement, whether the certificate must be held before application opens or simply before some later stage of the process, is set out in MPM’s own recruitment announcement for the 2027 cycle and should be confirmed there directly rather than assumed. Candidates preparing for a cycle close to this transition should treat the current year’s official notice, not a prior cycle’s rules or general online commentary, as the authoritative source, since transition-year details like this are exactly where outdated information circulates.

Does this reform affect every Grade 9 track the same way?

The Korean-history-to-certificate change and the question-count expansion apply to the shared structure of the Grade 9 written exam generally, but a candidate applying to a specialist track, such as the correctional and protective services track or one of the licensed specialist tracks, should still confirm their track’s specific subject list against the current year’s announcement, since track-specific subjects are set independently of this particular reform. See our guide to the correctional service track and our guide to specialist tracks for how those tracks differ from the general administration pattern.

How does this relate to the separate PSAT reform plan?

These are two different reforms on two different timelines. The Korean history and question count change is confirmed for 2027. A separate, longer-horizon plan to eventually move the Grade 9 exam toward a PSAT-style reasoning assessment is still at a research and consultation stage with no confirmed date, covered in our PSAT explainer. Conflating the two is a common source of confusion, since both changes touch the same exam and were reported around the same period.

What should I do if I am preparing for a cycle right around 2027?

Check the specific recruitment announcement for the exact year you intend to sit, rather than assuming either the old five-subject scored format or the new certificate-based format applies by default. MPM confirms subject lists, question counts and any certificate requirements fresh in each year’s announcement, and the Grade 9 exam page on this site tracks confirmed details as they are published.

FAQ

Is Korean history removed from the Grade 9 exam entirely? Not entirely. It moves from a scored written subject to a certificate requirement met through the Korean History Proficiency Test, rather than disappearing as a requirement.

How many questions will the remaining subjects have after 2027? 25 questions each, up from 20, for the subjects that remain in the scored written paper.

Does the 2027 reform include a switch to PSAT? No. The Korean history and question-count change is a separate, confirmed 2027 reform; the PSAT plan for Grade 9 remains under study with no confirmed date.

Does this change apply to every Grade 9 track? The general structural change applies broadly, but specialist and correctional tracks should confirm their own subject lists against the current year’s announcement.

Where can I confirm the exact rules for the year I am sitting? In that year’s MPM national civil service recruitment plan announcement, which is the only authoritative source for a live cycle.