<p>In South Korea’s highly stratified educational context, beliefs about meritocracy and <i>hakbeol</i> (academic prestige) are central to how adolescents understand individuals’ effort, opportunity, and success. This study examined patterns of meritocratic belief and <i>hakbeolism</i> among multicultural adolescents in South Korea and tested whether these patterns were associated with mental and physical well-being. Using data from the 10th wave of the Multicultural Adolescents Panel Study (MAPS; <i>N</i> = 1,091), we conducted a latent profile analysis to identify subgroups based on endorsement of meritocratic belief and <i>hakbeolism</i>. Five distinct profiles emerged, reflecting heterogeneous combinations of effort-based and prestige-based beliefs. These profiles differed significantly in depressive symptoms, life satisfaction, and subjective health. In particular, profiles characterized by stronger meritocratic beliefs and lower or moderate <i>hakbeol</i> endorsement reported more favorable well-being, whereas profiles marked by strong <i>hakbeol</i> endorsement and weaker meritocratic beliefs reported poorer outcomes. Rather than treating meritocratic and <i>hakbeol</i> beliefs as uniformly adaptive or maladaptive, the findings suggest that these belief systems may serve as contextually shaped frameworks through which multicultural adolescents interpret educational pressure and inequality. By identifying distinct belief configurations, this study advances understanding of how dominant educational narratives are psychologically negotiated within a competitive, status-oriented educational system.</p>