School life expectancy, primary and secondary, female (years) (School) in South Korea
South Korea: School life expectancy, primary and secondary, female (years) (School) was 11.82 years in 2018. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, female in South Korea, 1971–2018
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2018, school life expectancy, primary and secondary, female in South Korea stood at 11.82 years.
That represents a change of down 0.2% on the previous year and down 0.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary and secondary, female in South Korea peaked at 12.31 years in 1996 and was at its lowest, 8.04 years, in 1971.
That places South Korea 85th out of 193 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 48 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, female (years) (School) in South Korea, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 8.04 years | — |
| 1972 | 8.35 years | +3.8% |
| 1973 | 8.53 years | +2.2% |
| 1974 | 8.7 years | +2.0% |
| 1975 | 8.89 years | +2.1% |
| 1976 | 9.17 years | +3.2% |
| 1977 | 9.35 years | +1.9% |
| 1978 | 9.59 years | +2.6% |
| 1979 | 9.97 years | +4.0% |
| 1980 | 10.47 years | +5.0% |
| 1981 | 10.9 years | +4.0% |
| 1982 | 10.95 years | +0.5% |
| 1983 | 11.05 years | +0.8% |
| 1984 | 11.25 years | +1.9% |
| 1985 | 11.36 years | +0.9% |
| 1986 | 11.46 years | +0.9% |
| 1987 | 11.68 years | +1.9% |
| 1988 | 11.49 years | -1.6% |
| 1989 | 11.66 years | +1.5% |
| 1990 | 11.67 years | +0.1% |
| 1991 | 11.76 years | +0.8% |
| 1992 | 11.72 years | -0.4% |
| 1993 | 11.78 years | +0.6% |
| 1994 | 12.01 years | +1.9% |
| 1995 | 12.17 years | +1.4% |
| 1996 | 12.31 years | +1.1% |
| 1997 | 12.11 years | -1.6% |
| 1998 | 12.06 years | -0.5% |
| 1999 | 11.99 years | -0.5% |
| 2000 | 11.87 years | -1.0% |
| 2001 | 11.78 years | -0.8% |
| 2002 | 11.75 years | -0.2% |
| 2003 | 11.84 years | +0.8% |
| 2004 | 11.9 years | +0.5% |
| 2005 | 11.94 years | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 11.86 years | -0.6% |
| 2007 | 11.88 years | +0.1% |
| 2008 | 11.86 years | -0.2% |
| 2009 | 11.83 years | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 11.86 years | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 11.86 years | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 11.83 years | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 11.81 years | -0.2% |
| 2014 | 11.86 years | +0.4% |
| 2015 | 11.88 years | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 11.84 years | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 11.84 years | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 11.82 years | -0.2% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 11.82 years is below the median for high income countries, which is 12.41 years, 95% of the median. (70 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 11.82 years is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 11.82 years, 1.0× the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 8.96 years | 8.04 years | 9.97 years | 9 |
| 1980s | 11.23 years | 10.47 years | 11.68 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 11.96 years | 11.67 years | 12.31 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 11.85 years | 11.75 years | 11.94 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.85 years | 11.81 years | 11.88 years | 9 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
- 82 Cyprus 11.88 years compare
- 83 Austria 11.85 years compare
- 84 Kazakhstan 11.85 years compare
- 86 Uzbekistan 11.81 years compare
- 87 Seychelles 11.8 years compare
- 88 Lesotho 11.77 years compare
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 school life expectancy, primary and secondary, female in South Korea?
- School life expectancy, primary and secondary, female in South Korea was 11.82 years in 2018, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, female recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 12.31 years in 1996.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, female recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.04 years in 1971.
- How does South Korea rank for school life expectancy, primary and secondary, female?
- South Korea ranks 85th out of 193 countries with data for 2018.
- Is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, female rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- 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 secondary, female (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Number of years a person of school entrance age can expect to spend within the specified level of education. For a child of a certain age a, the school life expectancy is calculated as the sum of the age specific enrolment rates for the levels of education specified. The part of the enrolment that is not distributed by age is divided by the school-age population for the level of education they are enrolled in, and multiplied by the duration of that level of education. The result is then added to the sum of the age-specific enrolment rates. A relatively high SLE indicates greater probability for children to spend more years in education and higher overall retention within the education system. It must be noted that the expected number of years does not necessarily coincide with the expected number of grades of education completed, because of repetition. Since school life expectancy is an average based on participation in different levels of education, the expected number of years of schooling may be pulled down by the magnitude of children who never go to school. Those children who are in school may benefit from many more years of education than the average.