The number of applicants for the state-administered College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) has decreased two-point-six percent year-on-year.

The Education Ministry and the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation said on Friday that a total of 693-thousand people applied for the test slated for November tenth, down 18-thousand from a year ago.

Among the applicants, the number of high school students dropped by more than 15-thousand, while that of high school graduates fell by 27-hundred.

Applicants for the sections of mathematics and science increased, while those for the vocation inquiry section decreased, reflecting the social atmosphere encouraging the study of science and engineering and increased employment of high school graduates.