By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter

A Korean lecturer at a private learning institute in Seoul specializing in preparing students for the U.S. standardized Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) was arrested Monday for leaking questions to a couple of Koreans in the United States.

According to Suseo Police in southern Seoul, the lecturer is identified as a 37-year-old Kim, worked for an SAT cram school, or hagwon, in Yeoksam-dong, southern Seoul. He bought a copy of the Jan. 24, 2009, SAT test taken in Bangkok and received the questions by email before forwarding them to two Korean students in Connecticut prior to them taking the same test.

SAT tests are taken at the same time around the world, but sometimes there is a time difference - in this case, the time gap was 12 hours, police said.

Officers said Kim received the questions from Bangkok at 3 p.m. on Jan. 24, Bangkok time, and forwarded them two hours later to two Korean students, identified as Kim and Lee, both 19.

The students received the questions at 5:30 a.m. on the same day (U.S. Eastern Time) giving the two enough time to check them in advance before taking the test.

Kim and Lee scored 2,250 and 2,210 points each, out of a perfect 2,400 - much higher than their previous attempts.

Investigators raided Kim's office and secured hard disks from his computer that contained the questions as well as the answers he sent to his two students.

Kim is known among students planning to go to U.S. colleges for his ability to select questions that show up on the tests, charging 3 million won per each course.

"I was under enormous pressure to help the students get better scores," Kim was quoted by police as saying.

Police are looking into whether such cheating has taken place at other places and times, and whether more people are involved.

They have also called in the two students to ask whether they shared the information with other students in the U.S. Police also believe that besides Kim, other lecturers may have been involved in systematic cheating and are planning to call in the cram school's officials.

SAT prep courses are widely available in Gangnam with an increasing number of students going to study in the United States. The SAT is conducted by Education Testing Service (ETS), a U.S. nonprofit organization, which also conducts the TOEFL, GMAT and GRE, tests key to entering U.S. colleges and universities.

ETS was unavailable for comment.

Rumors have it that for years some students have cheated in this manner, but this is the first time people were caught. If convicted, Kim may be sentenced to up to five years in jail or a 15 million won fine.

Industry insiders are concerned whether the case may have a negative impact on ETS credibility. "This may make U.S. colleges and universities think twice before admitting Korean students," a private English institute lecturer said.

bjs@koreatimes.co.kr