Educational assessment in the Republic of Korea reflects social and cultural perspectives, as most assessments are considered as a ‘gatekeeper’ of one’s success in life, in terms of entering an elite school or having a better career. This paper presents a profile of the education system, especially focusing on the college entrance examination system in the Republic of Korea, and discusses the washback effect of the high-stake exam, the College Scholastic Ability Test, on stakeholders and the entire society. Furthermore, this paper will discuss the ways to improve the education policy, particularly the college entrance system, with emphasis on implications for future assessment reform from a standardised high-stake test to move towards the formative assessment.