Out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry in Korea
Korea: Out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry was 17,519 in 2024. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry in Korea, 2013–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
Korea recorded 17,519 for out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 3.4% on the previous year and down 24.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry in Korea peaked at 45,723 in 2016 and was at its lowest, 12,271, in 2018.
Korea ranks 75th of 180 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 12 years of available data.
Out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry in Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 38,630 | — |
| 2014 | 23,250 | -39.8% |
| 2015 | 32,268 | +38.8% |
| 2016 | 45,723 | +41.7% |
| 2017 | 32,758 | -28.4% |
| 2018 | 12,271 | -62.5% |
| 2019 | 31,523 | +156.9% |
| 2020 | 45,430 | +44.1% |
| 2021 | 29,292 | -35.5% |
| 2022 | 12,618 | -56.9% |
| 2023 | 18,140 | +43.8% |
| 2024 | 17,519 | -3.4% |
Korea compared with similar countries
- Korea's 17,519 is above the median for high income countries, which is 1,726, 10.2× the median. (70 countries reporting)
- Korea's 17,519 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 9,233, 1.9× the median. (28 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 30,918 | 12,271 | 45,723 | 7 |
| 2020s | 24,600 | 12,618 | 45,430 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Korea
More education data for Korea
- 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)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0484 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry in Korea?
- Out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry in Korea was 17,519 in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry recorded in Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 45,723 in 2016.
- What is the lowest out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry recorded in Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 12,271 in 2018.
- How does Korea rank for out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry?
- Korea ranks 75th out of 180 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry rising or falling in Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 24.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Korea data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school children, one year before the official primary entry age, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release