With Korean universities continuing with their early admission programs for 2015, the nonrefundable application fees for higher education institutes have become topic of discussion as the sky-high fees deal a significant financial blow to poor students.

A total of 24 colleges across the country are currently charging 80,000 won ($74) or more for each applicant, according to Education Ministry data recently revealed by Rep. Han Sun-kyo of the Saenuri Party.

The data showed that students had to pay the steepest fees ― 136,053 won ― to apply for early admission to Korea University in 2014. Three other universities, Ajau University, Yonsei University Wonju Campus and Pohang University of Science and Technology also charged applicants more than 100,000 won.

Korea University’s fees marked an increase of 65.6 percent from 82,143 won in 2012. But Hankuk University of Foreign Studies had the highest rate of increase, hiking the fee from 30,000 won in 2012 to 55,000 won.

According to Rep. Han, 10 colleges made more than 10 billion won from 2012 to 2014 off the application fees alone.

Of the 269 colleges that submitted data, 90 increased their fees. Another 29 colleges maintain their fees, but 150 reduced application fees, including Gwangju-based Honam University, which abolished application fees altogether.

But the majority of the schools that lowered the fees were based outside of Seoul. Most of the prestigious Seoul-based universities, which already had relatively high fees, continued to charge more.

Korea’s education law states that each student can apply to up to six colleges for early admission, and does not limit the number of applications for the regular admission. Since a typical student applies to multiple colleges, the financial burden of application fees restrains some students from applying to the school of their choice.

“I’m sure each school has its own reason for how it sets application fees, but it is difficult to imagine why some schools would collect 100,000 won while others would just charge 15,000 won,” Han said. “Colleges must charge a reasonable amount for an application, considering that some students with limited financial means are unable to apply. If possible, they should lower the fees, to give more students a chance.”

Rep. Youn of the New Politics Alliance for Democracy also voiced concerns over the financial burden and said that the government should implement a measure mandating that each higher education institution must disclose how the application fees were used.

The fees in Korea appear even pricier when compared to countries where tuition fees are higher but application fees are substantially less.

According to Rep. Youn, the average application fee here is 50,300 won. But a study by U.S. News & World Report, a magazine known for its influential annual report on colleges in the U.S, showed that the average fee per student in the U.S. was $41.

The significant disparity stands out even more considering that the average tuition fee for four-year institutes ― 6.3 million won ― is much less than the average tuition for the 10 least inexpensive institutions in the U.S., which is $8,363.

In spring of 2014, Stanford University in California charged its applicants $90. This was the highest fee for undergraduates among 1,073 ranked institutions that submitted data, but far less than the amount charged by Korea University.

By Yoon Min-sik (minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)