School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Republic of Korea
Republic of Korea: School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes was 16.49 years in 2018. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Republic of Korea, 1971–2018
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Republic of Korea is 16.49 years, measured in 2018.
That represents a change of up 0.1% on the previous year and down 1.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Republic of Korea peaked at 16.87 years in 2011 and was at its lowest, 9.02 years, in 1971.
Republic of Korea ranks 27th of 183 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 48 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Republic of Korea, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 9.02 years | — |
| 1972 | 9.33 years | +3.4% |
| 1973 | 9.51 years | +2.0% |
| 1974 | 9.69 years | +1.8% |
| 1975 | 9.87 years | +1.9% |
| 1976 | 10.19 years | +3.3% |
| 1977 | 10.36 years | +1.7% |
| 1978 | 10.61 years | +2.3% |
| 1979 | 10.98 years | +3.6% |
| 1980 | 11.47 years | +4.4% |
| 1981 | 11.94 years | +4.1% |
| 1982 | 12.18 years | +2.0% |
| 1983 | 12.48 years | +2.5% |
| 1984 | 12.83 years | +2.8% |
| 1985 | 13.05 years | +1.7% |
| 1986 | 13.24 years | +1.5% |
| 1987 | 13.45 years | +1.6% |
| 1988 | 13.37 years | -0.5% |
| 1989 | 13.54 years | +1.2% |
| 1990 | 13.58 years | +0.3% |
| 1991 | 13.71 years | +0.9% |
| 1992 | 13.72 years | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 13.94 years | +1.6% |
| 1994 | 14.24 years | +2.2% |
| 1995 | 14.5 years | +1.8% |
| 1996 | 14.88 years | +2.6% |
| 1997 | 15.5 years | +4.1% |
| 1998 | 15.21 years | -1.9% |
| 1999 | 15.43 years | +1.5% |
| 2000 | 15.63 years | +1.3% |
| 2001 | 15.68 years | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 15.73 years | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 15.91 years | +1.2% |
| 2004 | 16.1 years | +1.2% |
| 2005 | 16.3 years | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 16.44 years | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 16.66 years | +1.3% |
| 2008 | 16.74 years | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 16.78 years | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 16.85 years | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 16.87 years | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 16.74 years | -0.8% |
| 2013 | 16.65 years | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 16.65 years | -0.0% |
| 2015 | 16.6 years | -0.3% |
| 2016 | 16.51 years | -0.6% |
| 2017 | 16.48 years | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 16.49 years | +0.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 9.95 years | 9.02 years | 10.98 years | 9 |
| 1980s | 12.76 years | 11.47 years | 13.54 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 14.47 years | 13.58 years | 15.5 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 16.2 years | 15.63 years | 16.78 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 16.65 years | 16.48 years | 16.87 years | 9 |
Countries ranked near Republic of Korea
- 24 Malta 16.58 years compare
- 25 Lithuania 16.57 years compare
- 26 Costa Rica 16.55 years compare
- 28 Macau, China 16.44 years compare
- 29 Puerto Rico 16.42 years compare
- 30 Switzerland 16.41 years compare
More education data for Republic of Korea
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 173,133 (2024)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 69.5% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 10.2% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 100.87 (2024)
- School enrollment, primary 100.9% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Republic of Korea?
- School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in Republic of Korea was 16.49 years in 2018, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in Republic of Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 16.87 years in 2011.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in Republic of Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.02 years in 1971.
- How does Republic of Korea rank for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes?
- Republic of Korea ranks 27th out of 183 countries with data for 2018.
- Is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes rising or falling in Republic of Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Republic of Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Expected years of schooling is the number of years a child of school entrance age is expected to spend at school, or university, including years spent on repetition. It is the sum of the age-specific enrolment ratios for primary, secondary, post-secondary non-tertiary and tertiary education.