If you are preparing for the grade 9 civil service exam, you have probably heard that "Korean history is being dropped from 2027." More precisely, the subject is not disappearing; instead of sitting it in the exam hall, candidates will submit a Korean History Competency Test (Hanneungeom) result. This article uses what the Ministry of Personnel Management and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety have announced to explain what changes, what Grade 3 on the test means in points, and what to do now.

Three changes to the 2027 grade 9 open recruitment exam

According to the Ministry of Personnel Management announcement carried by the government's policy briefing site, the reform has three core points. First, the Korean history subject in the national grade 9 open recruitment exam is replaced by Grade 3 or higher on the Korean History Competency Test, run by the National Institute of Korean History. Second, the written exam is taken in four subjects (Korean, English and two specialist subjects), without Korean history. Third, the number of questions per subject rises from 20 to 25. The same direction applies to local government grade 9 exams as well as the national one.

Legal basis and timing

The Ministry of Personnel Management pre-announced an amendment to the Civil Service Examination Decree on March 13, 2025, saying it would apply "from 2027." For local governments, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety prepared an amendment to the Local Public Officials Appointment Decree, which the Cabinet Council approved on May 28, 2025, also taking effect in 2027. So exams already held through 2026 use the five-subject format including Korean history, and the new method starts with the 2027 exams. The exact year of application and the application schedule must be confirmed in that year's exam notice.

Five subjects of 20 questions become four subjects of 25

The old grade 9 written exam had five subjects including Korean history, with 20 questions per subject, 100 questions in all, answered in 110 minutes. After the reform, the 20 Korean history questions drop out and five questions are added to each of the other four subjects, giving 4 subjects x 25 questions = 100 questions, and the 110-minute time limit stays the same. The total number of questions and the time are unchanged, but each subject is examined more deeply in the same time. The change in question style already applied to Korean and English is covered separately in why memorising grammar no longer raises your score.

Specialist subjects grow from 40 questions to 50

Because each job series has two specialist subjects, they previously added up to 40 questions. After the reform each subject has 25 questions, for a total of 50 questions. For general administration, for example, that means 25 questions in Administrative Law and 25 in Public Administration. With less time spent on Korean history, the exam is decided more by the specialist subjects, so look at the nature of those subjects first when choosing a job series. How subjects differ by series is laid out in the two reforms that changed the grade 9 exam.

Grade 3 on the test means 60 points

The advanced Korean History Competency Test has 50 questions and a 100-point maximum, with 1 to 3 points per question. By the National Institute of Korean History's standard, Grade 1 is 80 points or more, Grade 2 is 70 to 79, and Grade 3 is 60 to 69. Grade 3 or higher, the requirement for grade 9, therefore means scoring 60 or more on the advanced test. It is an eligibility requirement you only need to clear, so a higher score does not add to your written exam total. And unlike a written exam scored by correct answers, it is a grade requirement: once you hold Grade 3 or higher, you no longer need to spend exam preparation time on Korean history.

There is no expiry, so you can earn it now

The Ministry of Personnel Management explained that the test result has no separate validity period. Once you hold Grade 3 or higher it is recognized at any time, so a result you already have can be used. Grade 5 and 7 open recruitment already switched Korean history to this test in 2012 and 2021 and require Grade 2 or higher, while grade 9 uses the lower Grade 3. For local government exams, it has been reported that grade 9 requires Grade 3 and grade 7 requires Grade 2. The same test needs a different grade depending on the exam, so do not mix them up.

What candidates should check now

First, if you do not have a result yet, check the test schedule. The National Institute of Korean History website says the 80th test is on October 17, 2026, with applications held from September 15 to 22 and already closed, and later sessions can be checked on the same site. Second, by when the result must be submitted cannot be stated in this article, so be sure to read the eligibility and submission deadline in the 2027 exam notice. Third, bonus points and eligibility rules can differ by job series; for the deadline to register bonus points after taking the exam, see civil service exam bonus point registration deadline, and for the differences between national and local exams, see national versus local civil service.

A note in closing

This article is general information compiled from material released by the Ministry of Personnel Management, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the National Institute of Korean History, and is not legal advice. Eligibility, submission timing and question composition can change in each year's notice, so before applying, check the Cyber National Examination Center and the exam notice of the local government you plan to apply to for that year.