Educational attainment rate … male short-cycle tertiary urban in South Korea
South Korea: Educational attainment rate … male short-cycle tertiary urban was 58.1% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Korea, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Korea stood at 58.1%. That is the highest value across all 19 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.5% on the previous year and up 10.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Korea peaked at 58.1% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 18.9%, in 1970.
That places South Korea 3rd out of 102 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 19 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate … male short-cycle tertiary urban in South Korea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 18.9% | — |
| 2000 | 34.6% | +83.1% |
| 2001 | 29.5% | -14.8% |
| 2002 | 29.8% | +1.1% |
| 2005 | 42.9% | +43.7% |
| 2009 | 37.9% | -11.6% |
| 2010 | 44.3% | +16.8% |
| 2013 | 51.6% | +16.6% |
| 2014 | 52.5% | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 48.5% | -7.7% |
| 2016 | 53.9% | +11.2% |
| 2017 | 54.4% | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 55.1% | +1.4% |
| 2019 | 55.5% | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 55.8% | +0.7% |
| 2021 | 56.0% | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 56.2% | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 57.3% | +1.9% |
| 2024 | 58.1% | +1.5% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 58.1% is above the median for high income countries, which is 36.6%, 1.6× the median. (41 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 58.1% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 26.4%, 2.2× the median. (12 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Educational attainment rate … male 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 | +83.1% | 18.9% | 34.6% |
| 2005 | +43.7% | 29.8% | 42.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 18.9% | 18.9% | 18.9% | 1 |
| 2000s | 35.0% | 29.5% | 42.9% | 5 |
| 2010s | 52.0% | 44.3% | 55.5% | 8 |
| 2020s | 56.7% | 55.8% | 58.1% | 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 58.1% 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 58.1% in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.9% in 1970.
- How does South Korea rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- South Korea ranks 3rd out of 102 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 10.6%. 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, male (%). 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