Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Korea
Korea: Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from was 22.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Korea, 1998–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Korea stood at 22.9%. That is the highest value across all 21 years on record.
The figure is up 1.5% on the previous year and up 13.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Korea peaked at 22.9% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 10.0%, in 1998.
That places Korea 32nd out of 122 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 21 years of available data.
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Korea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 10.0% | — |
| 1999 | 10.7% | +7.4% |
| 2000 | 11.2% | +4.3% |
| 2001 | 11.7% | +4.7% |
| 2002 | 12.3% | +5.5% |
| 2003 | 12.7% | +2.8% |
| 2004 | 13.9% | +10.0% |
| 2006 | 16.2% | +16.2% |
| 2007 | 18.0% | +11.3% |
| 2008 | 19.1% | +5.8% |
| 2009 | 20.6% | +8.1% |
| 2011 | 20.1% | -2.6% |
| 2015 | 20.1% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 20.1% | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 21.6% | +7.7% |
| 2019 | 22.2% | +2.8% |
| 2020 | 22.1% | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 22.2% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 22.0% | -1.0% |
| 2023 | 22.5% | +2.6% |
| 2024 | 22.9% | +1.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 10.3% | 10.0% | 10.7% | 2 |
| 2000s | 15.1% | 11.2% | 20.6% | 9 |
| 2010s | 20.8% | 20.1% | 22.2% | 5 |
| 2020s | 22.3% | 22.0% | 22.9% | 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 percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Korea?
- Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Korea was 22.9% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 22.9% in 2024.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.0% in 1998.
- How does Korea rank for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from?
- Korea ranks 32nd out of 122 countries with data for 2024.
- Is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from rising or falling in Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.7%. 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 Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from Health and Welfare programmes, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 21 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release