Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Korea

Korea: Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or was 87.0% in 2024. β–² Rising

Latest (2024)
87.0%
Change on year
up 0.5%
World rank
16th
of 140 countries
All-time high
87.0%
in 2024
All-time low
24.6%
in 1970
Years of data
30
1970–2024

Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Korea, 1970–2024

204060801970199720241970: 24.6 %1980: 39.1 %1985: 68.7 %1990: 60.1 %1995: 67.1 %2000: 72.6 %2001: 74.6 %2002: 75.3 %2003: 75.9 %2004: 76.7 %2005: 77.2 %2006: 78.4 %2007: 79.2 %2008: 79.6 %2009: 74.2 %2010: 79.6 %2011: 81 %2012: 81.7 %2013: 82.2 %2014: 83.1 %2015: 82.7 %2016: 83.9 %2017: 84.1 %2018: 84.4 %2019: 84.7 %2020: 84.9 %2021: 85.3 %2022: 85.7 %2023: 86.5 %2024: 87 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Korea is 87.0%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 30 years on record.

That represents a change of up 0.5% on the previous year and up 4.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Korea peaked at 87.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 24.6%, in 1970.

Korea ranks 16th of 140 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 30 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 24.6% 24.6% 24.6% 1
1980s 53.9% 39.1% 68.7% 2
1990s 63.6% 60.1% 67.1% 2
2000s 76.4% 72.6% 79.6% 10
2010s 82.7% 79.6% 84.7% 10
2020s 85.9% 84.9% 87.0% 5

Countries ranked near Korea

  1. 13 Poland 88.7% compare
  2. 14 Bahamas 88.0% compare
  3. 15 Latvia 87.7% compare
  4. 17 Switzerland 87.0% compare
  5. 18 Hungary 86.8% compare
  6. 19 Austria 86.5% compare

See the full ranking of 140 places β†’

More education data for Korea

All data for Korea β†’

Frequently asked questions

What is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Korea?
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Korea was 87.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in Korea?
The highest recorded value was 87.0% in 2024.
What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 24.6% in 1970.
How does Korea rank for educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or?
Korea ranks 16th out of 140 countries with data for 2024.
Is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or rising or falling in Korea?
Over the last ten years it is up 4.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Korea data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or higher, population 25+ years, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Korea. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 20 August 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/educational-attainment-rate-completed-upper-secondary-education-or-higher-population-25-2/korea-rep/

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About this data

Indicator
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or higher, population 25+ years, male (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics)
Coverage
140 places, 2,301 data points, 1970–2025
Last refreshed

February 2026 Data Release