An Analysis of the Impact of University Admission Strategy on Private Tutoring Expenditure: Differential Effects of Household Income and Academic Achievement Levels

The purpose of this article is to examine how, in the context of university admission strategy, private tutoring expenditure is affected by household income and academic achievement levels. To this end, the impact of university admission strategy on private tutoring expenditure was analyzed using Gyeonggi Education Panel Study 7-9th data. To mitigate selection bias while choosing strategies, this study used a selection correction term to scrutinize the impact of university admission strategies on private tutoring expenditure. The results of the analyses are as follows. First, where early admission was being pursued, private tutoring expenditure reduced on average, compared to those following a regular admissions route. Second, upper-income students with higher achievement levels spend more on private tutoring for early admission than they do for regular admission. On the other hand, students with lower incomes and achievement levels invest more on regular admission. Third, the trigger private tutoring differs in accordance with household income and academic achievement, even among students pursuing the same strategy, and the groups affected by private tutoring also differed. These findings suggest that a private tutoring impact index, that accounts for the level of income and achievement, should be incorporated into university admission systems or private tutoring policies. Additionally, it is necessary to enhance personalized admissions counseling in public education to ensure all students have equitable access to admissions information.