School life expectancy, primary and lower … life both sexes lower in South Korea
South Korea: School life expectancy, primary and lower … life both sexes lower was 8.97 years in 2024. ▬ Flat
Latest (2024)
8.97 years
Change on year
up 0.0%
World rank
97th
of 200 countries
All-time high
9.04 years
in 2011
All-time low
8.87 years
in 2020
Years of data
25
2000–2024
School life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in South Korea, 2000–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 8.97 years for school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in 2024.
That represents a change of up 0.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in South Korea peaked at 9.04 years in 2011 and was at its lowest, 8.87 years, in 2020.
That places South Korea 97th out of 200 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
School life expectancy, primary and lower … life both sexes lower in South Korea, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 8.95 years | — |
| 2001 | 8.93 years | -0.3% |
| 2002 | 8.92 years | -0.0% |
| 2003 | 8.93 years | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 8.95 years | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 8.96 years | +0.1% |
| 2006 | 8.98 years | +0.2% |
| 2007 | 9.01 years | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 9.02 years | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 8.99 years | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 9.03 years | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 9.04 years | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 9.01 years | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 8.97 years | -0.4% |
| 2014 | 8.96 years | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 9 years | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 8.97 years | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 8.93 years | -0.5% |
| 2018 | 8.93 years | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 8.95 years | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 8.87 years | -0.9% |
| 2021 | 8.88 years | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 8.93 years | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 8.97 years | +0.5% |
| 2024 | 8.97 years | +0.0% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 8.97 years is below the median for high income countries, which is 9.09 years, 99% of the median. (73 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 8.97 years is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 8.98 years, 100% of the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 8.96 years | 8.92 years | 9.02 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 8.98 years | 8.93 years | 9.04 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 8.92 years | 8.87 years | 8.97 years | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More education data for South 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 school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in South Korea?
- School life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes in South Korea was 8.97 years in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 9.04 years in 2011.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.87 years in 2020.
- How does South Korea rank for school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes?
- South Korea ranks 97th out of 200 countries with data for 2024.
- Is school life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, primary and lower secondary, both sexes (years). 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