G20 Summit to postpone S Korea's nationwide college entrance exam

South Korea has postponed this year' s nationwide college entrance exam by one week due to its coinciding schedule with the G20 summit to be held in November in Seoul, the education ministry said Friday.

The ministry said the decision to push back the exam by one week to Nov. 18 has been made over concerns of massive road blockages and police forces clogging the streets for security enhancements during the G20 summit, to be held from Nov. 11 to Nov. 12, could possibly detract the students from focusing on the nationwide, state-administered college exam, originally set for Nov. 11.

The single-day exam results heavily impact the students' chances of getting into their desired schools as it is a major determining factor for college admissions in South Korea.

Special discretionary forces and regulations have been put in effect on test days to help students maintain its posture and focus on the exam.

South Korea has also delayed the annual exam once in 2005 for similar reasons when the test date fell on the same day as the summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Busan.