Percentage of graduates from Science, Technology, Engineering … who in South Korea
South Korea: Percentage of graduates from Science, Technology, Engineering … who was 27.7% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Percentage of graduates from Science, Technology, Engineering and in South Korea, 1998–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for percentage of graduates from science, technology, engineering and in South Korea is 27.7%, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.2% on the previous year and down 1.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from science, technology, engineering and in South Korea peaked at 33.3% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 24.9%, in 2019.
South Korea ranks 98th of 113 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Percentage of graduates from Science, Technology, Engineering … who in South Korea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 31.1% | — |
| 1999 | 30.4% | -2.1% |
| 2000 | 31.9% | +4.8% |
| 2001 | 32.0% | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 33.3% | +4.1% |
| 2003 | 31.4% | -5.7% |
| 2004 | 29.2% | -7.0% |
| 2005 | 29.1% | -0.3% |
| 2006 | 27.5% | -5.7% |
| 2007 | 26.2% | -4.8% |
| 2008 | 26.1% | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 27.6% | +6.0% |
| 2011 | 27.1% | -1.7% |
| 2012 | 27.6% | +1.5% |
| 2013 | 27.7% | +0.4% |
| 2014 | 27.9% | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 26.0% | -7.0% |
| 2016 | 26.4% | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 25.2% | -4.3% |
| 2019 | 24.9% | -1.2% |
| 2020 | 25.2% | +1.1% |
| 2021 | 26.5% | +5.2% |
| 2022 | 27.6% | +4.2% |
| 2023 | 27.6% | -0.1% |
| 2024 | 27.7% | +0.2% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 27.7% is below the median for high income countries, which is 34.8%, 80% of the median. (56 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 27.7% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 33.9%, 82% of the median. (15 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 30.7% | 30.4% | 31.1% | 2 |
| 2000s | 29.4% | 26.1% | 33.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 26.6% | 24.9% | 27.9% | 8 |
| 2020s | 26.9% | 25.2% | 27.7% | 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 percentage of graduates from science, technology, engineering and in South Korea?
- Percentage of graduates from science, technology, engineering and in South Korea was 27.7% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of graduates from science, technology, engineering and recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 33.3% in 2002.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from science, technology, engineering and recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 24.9% in 2019.
- How does South Korea rank for percentage of graduates from science, technology, engineering and?
- South Korea ranks 98th out of 113 countries with data for 2024.
- Is percentage of graduates from science, technology, engineering and rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Percentage of graduates from Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics programmes in tertiary education who are female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release