Educational attainment rate … both short-cycle tertiary urban in South Korea
South Korea: Educational attainment rate … both short-cycle tertiary urban was 52.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Korea, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 52.9% for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in 2024. That is the highest value across all 19 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.8% on the previous year and up 15.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Korea peaked at 52.9% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 11.2%, in 1970.
South Korea ranks 7th of 101 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 19 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate … both short-cycle tertiary urban in South Korea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 11.2% | — |
| 2000 | 27.5% | +145.8% |
| 2001 | 21.8% | -20.7% |
| 2002 | 22.4% | +2.6% |
| 2005 | 35.5% | +58.5% |
| 2009 | 32.4% | -8.8% |
| 2010 | 38.7% | +19.5% |
| 2013 | 44.7% | +15.3% |
| 2014 | 45.7% | +2.3% |
| 2015 | 43.6% | -4.5% |
| 2016 | 47.2% | +8.3% |
| 2017 | 48.0% | +1.6% |
| 2018 | 48.9% | +1.9% |
| 2019 | 49.6% | +1.3% |
| 2020 | 50.0% | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 50.4% | +0.7% |
| 2022 | 50.9% | +1.0% |
| 2023 | 52.0% | +2.2% |
| 2024 | 52.9% | +1.8% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 52.9% is above the median for high income countries, which is 40.2%, 1.3× the median. (41 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 52.9% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 27.2%, 1.9× the median. (12 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Educational attainment rate … both short-cycle tertiary urban in South Korea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | +145.8% | 11.2% | 27.5% |
| 2005 | +58.5% | 22.4% | 35.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 11.2% | 11.2% | 11.2% | 1 |
| 2000s | 27.9% | 21.8% | 35.5% | 5 |
| 2010s | 45.8% | 38.7% | 49.6% | 8 |
| 2020s | 51.2% | 50.0% | 52.9% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More education data for South Korea
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 98.79 (2022)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.94 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 233,046 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 76 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 434,627 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 412,067 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.66 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.51 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -4.15 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Korea?
- Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Korea was 52.9% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 52.9% in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.2% in 1970.
- How does South Korea rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- South Korea ranks 7th out of 101 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education or higher, population 25+ years, urban, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 19 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release