Years of schooling in South Korea
South Korea: Years of schooling was 12.72 in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
12.72
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
25th
of 192 countries
All-time high
12.72
in 2021
All-time low
9.27
in 1990
Years of data
34
1990–2023
Years of schooling in South Korea, 1990–2023
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 12.72 for years of schooling in 2023. That is the highest value across all 34 years on record.
The figure is up 6.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, years of schooling in South Korea peaked at 12.72 in 2021 and was at its lowest, 9.27, in 1990.
That places South Korea 25th out of 192 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Years of schooling in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 9.27 | — |
| 1991 | 9.42 | +1.6% |
| 1992 | 9.56 | +1.6% |
| 1993 | 9.71 | +1.5% |
| 1994 | 9.85 | +1.5% |
| 1995 | 10 | +1.5% |
| 1996 | 10.12 | +1.2% |
| 1997 | 10.25 | +1.2% |
| 1998 | 10.37 | +1.2% |
| 1999 | 10.5 | +1.2% |
| 2000 | 10.62 | +1.2% |
| 2001 | 10.74 | +1.2% |
| 2002 | 10.87 | +1.2% |
| 2003 | 10.99 | +1.1% |
| 2004 | 11.12 | +1.1% |
| 2005 | 11.24 | +1.1% |
| 2006 | 11.15 | -0.8% |
| 2007 | 11.05 | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 10.96 | -0.8% |
| 2009 | 10.87 | -0.8% |
| 2010 | 11.64 | +7.1% |
| 2011 | 11.74 | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 11.83 | +0.8% |
| 2013 | 11.93 | +0.8% |
| 2014 | 12.02 | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 12.12 | +0.8% |
| 2016 | 12.22 | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 12.32 | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 12.42 | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 12.52 | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 12.62 | +0.8% |
| 2021 | 12.72 | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 12.72 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 12.72 | +0.0% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 12.72 is above the median for high income countries, which is 12.39, 1.0× the median. (64 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 12.72 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 9.43, 1.3× the median. (30 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 9.9 | 9.27 | 10.5 | 10 |
| 2000s | 10.96 | 10.62 | 11.24 | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.08 | 11.64 | 12.52 | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.7 | 12.62 | 12.72 | 4 |
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 years of schooling in South Korea?
- Years of schooling in South Korea was 12.72 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest years of schooling recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 12.72 in 2021.
- What is the lowest years of schooling recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.27 in 1990.
- How does South Korea rank for years of schooling?
- South Korea ranks 25th out of 192 countries with data for 2023.
- Is years of schooling rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Years of schooling. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).