Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Republic of Korea
Republic of Korea: Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary was 85.6% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Republic of Korea, 1970–2024
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in cumulative.
Analysis
Republic of Korea recorded 85.6% for educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in 2024. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.6% on the previous year and up 6.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Republic of Korea peaked at 85.6% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 15.9%, in 1970.
That places Republic of Korea 52nd out of 131 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Republic of Korea, year by year
| Year | cumulative | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 15.9% | — |
| 1975 | 23.4% | +47.3% |
| 1980 | 33.6% | +43.7% |
| 1990 | 57.5% | +71.0% |
| 1995 | 63.0% | +9.5% |
| 2000 | 69.6% | +10.5% |
| 2003 | 72.2% | +3.8% |
| 2004 | 73.0% | +1.1% |
| 2005 | 74.1% | +1.5% |
| 2006 | 74.9% | +1.1% |
| 2007 | 75.8% | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 76.4% | +0.9% |
| 2009 | 71.0% | -7.1% |
| 2010 | 77.1% | +8.5% |
| 2011 | 77.8% | +1.0% |
| 2012 | 78.6% | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 79.4% | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 80.3% | +1.2% |
| 2015 | 80.3% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 81.8% | +1.8% |
| 2017 | 82.2% | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 82.4% | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 82.8% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 83.1% | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 83.7% | +0.7% |
| 2022 | 84.1% | +0.4% |
| 2023 | 85.0% | +1.2% |
| 2024 | 85.6% | +0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 19.6% | 15.9% | 23.4% | 2 |
| 1980s | 33.6% | 33.6% | 33.6% | 1 |
| 1990s | 60.2% | 57.5% | 63.0% | 2 |
| 2000s | 73.4% | 69.6% | 76.4% | 8 |
| 2010s | 80.3% | 77.1% | 82.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 84.3% | 83.1% | 85.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Republic of Korea
More education data for Republic of Korea
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.37 million (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male (number), annual growth rate 1.17 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 846,694 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes (number), annual -7.78 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 2.73 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) -1.19 % change on previous year (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 132,721 (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 40,412 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 1.23 million (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) -0.0122 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Republic of Korea?
- Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Republic of Korea was 85.6% in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary recorded in Republic of Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 85.6% in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary recorded in Republic of Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.9% in 1970.
- How does Republic of Korea rank for educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary?
- Republic of Korea ranks 52nd out of 131 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary rising or falling in Republic of Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Republic of Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary, population 25+, female (%) (cumulative). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
The percentage of population ages 25 and over that attained or completed lower secondary education.