Dongduk Women's University student jackets are laid on school grounds in Seoul, Tuesday, in protest of the university's possible transition to becoming a coeducational institution. Yonhap

The escalating tension between Dongduk Women's University students and its administration regarding a possible transition to a coeducational school is sparking a debate over whether Korea still needs higher educational institutions for women.

Earlier last month, Dongduk Women's University in northern Seoul held a meeting to establish a university development plan at the headquarters level, during which a transition to a coed school was suggested, citing the decrease in the country's school-age population.

"The decline in the school-age population is likely to make it difficult to recruit new students in the future. The transition to coeducation can be an alternative," the school official said.

Although the school says that the transition is "not an agenda that has been officially discussed yet" and is "just one of several ideas from the meeting," students are protesting in response, demanding the university withdraw the suggestion and introduce a direct presidential election system.

"The founding spirit of Dongduk Women's University is (granting the right) to education through women's education. A university headquarters that ignores Dongduk's founding spirit is a disgrace. As an institution responsible for women's education, women's universities should take the lead in fostering female talents," the student group said in an announcement.

On Wednesday, the school's campus was covered with students' school jackets in protest against the university. Students have occupied all the buildings since 8 p.m. on Monday and have boycotted all classes since Tuesday.

They also used red spray paint to create graffiti, with phrases such as "no to transitioning to coed" on walls and floors in and outside the school building.

The main building of Dongduk Women's University is covered with handwritten posters and graffiti in protest of the school's possible transition to a coeducation institution, Tuesday. Yonhap

In response, the school explained in a statement released on Tuesday that the coeducation transition issue was part of the development plan discussion, and the school "plans to gather opinions" on the matter.

Korea has seen the establishment of numerous women's universities aimed at protecting women's right to education, which has long been excluded due to the nation's patriarchal convention.

The academic community believes that women's universities are still meaningful as academic foundations for teaching and learning about gender discrimination, gender violence and minority issues.

In fact, Ewha Womans University, Sookmyung Women's University and Dongduk Women's University provide classes aimed at recognizing and exploring discriminatory situations in each field, such as women's labor policy research and women and law stories, which other coeducational universities do not run.

Korea also came 99th out of 146 countries included in the World Economic Forum's gender gap ranking in 2022. The report said that at that rate of progress, it is estimated that it will take 132 years to reach full gender equality.

However, due to the population decline, many universities are struggling to recruit students.

White chrysanthemum flower wreaths are put on display at Dongduk Women's University campus in Seoul in protest of the university's possible transition to a coeducational institution, Tuesday. Yonhap

Korea has seen a constant drop in its school-age population, aged between 6 and 21, without a rebound from 9.18 million in 2014 to 7.14 million in 2024 amid plummeting birthrates.

In the past, Sangmyung Women's University transitioned to Sangmyung University after becoming coed, while Sungsim Women's University and Hyosung Women's University in Daegu merged with Catholic universities to become coed, to address the issue of low first-year enrollment.

According to the Ministry of Education, there are 14 women's colleges in Korea, with seven four-year women's colleges on the list. This number includes Dongduk Women's University and Ewha Womans University.

However, students say that the issue is irrelevant for universities in Seoul, such as Dongduk Women's University. Last year, the school had the lowest acceptance rate among women's universities in Korea, at around 7.6 percent.

While student groups from several women's universities have expressed solidarity with those at Dongduk, the movement is spreading to other universities. Students at Sungshin Women's University have also begun demanding the withdrawal of the announcement regarding recruiting foreign male students next year.