This article needs additional citations for verification .(June 2011) |
SKY is an unofficial grouping and acronym for the three most prestigious and academically competitive universities located in Seoul, South Korea. It consists of Seoul National University , Korea University , and Yonsei University . [1] Students enrolled in Yonsei University prefers to call it as 'Seo-Yeon-Ko' (Korean: 서연고). [2]
The term is widely used in South Korea, both in the media and by the universities themselves. [3] [4] Being admitted to one of the SKY universities is frequently seen as important to one's career and social position in the country. [5] [6] The acronym also implies that the universities are extremely difficult to get into (i.e., students are reaching for the sky).
Institution | Type | Location | Established | Academic staff | Undergraduate enrollment | Postgraduate enrollment | Rankings | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
QS World (2025) [7] | ARWU World (2023) [8] | THE World (2023) [9] | THE Asia (2023) [10] | QS Asia (2025) [11] | |||||||
Seoul National University | Public (National) | Sillim-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul | 1946 | 2,278 (2022) [12] | 15,870 (2022) [12] | 12,394 (2022) [12] | 31 | 94 | 56 | 11 | 18 |
Korea University | Private | Anam-dong, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul | 1905 | 1,511 (2022) [13] | 19,598 (2022) [13] | 9,847 (2022) [13] | 67 | 201–300 | 201–250 | 27 | 13 |
Yonsei University | Private | Sinchon-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul | 1885 | 1,712 (2022) [14] | 18,200 (2022) [14] | 11,632 (2022) [14] | 56 | 201–300 | 78 | 13 | 9 |
In 2010, it was reported that 46.3% of high government officials and 50% of CEOs of major financial industries were graduates of SKY universities. [15] Also, over 60% of the students who passed the 2010 Korean Bar examination were graduates of SKY universities. [16] Being admitted in one of these universities typically requires students to be within the top 1% of the Korean College Scholastic Ability Test [ citation needed ].
There have been a number of SKY university students who have dropped out of school to protest against South Korea's overheated academic elitism. [17]