September 10, 2025
SEOUL – Seven out of 10 young South Koreans have completed higher education, the highest rate among developed nations, according to an annual education report released Tuesday by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Higher education refers to 2-year colleges, universities and graduate schools.
According to the OECD’s Education at a Glance 2025, 70.6 percent of South Koreans aged 25 to 34 had attained higher education in 2024, well above the OECD average of 48.4 percent. Canada followed with 68.9 percent, while Ireland ranked third at 66.2 percent. Among all adults aged 25 to 64, South Korea’s higher education attainment stood at 56.2 percent, also exceeding the OECD average of 41.9 percent.
Despite the high attainment, employment outcomes were mixed. The employment rate across all education levels was 76.1 percent in 2024, slightly up from a year earlier but below the OECD average of 79 percent — showing a stark contrast between education level and employment rate.
By level, South Korea posted employment rates of 72.5 percent for high school graduates, 78.6 percent for junior college graduates and 79.9 percent for university graduates. All three figures trail the respective OECD averages of 77.6 percent, 82.5 percent and 85.9 percent.
Wage gaps also widened. In 2023, putting high school graduates at a base index of 100, junior college students earned 109.9 percent, university graduates earned 132.5 percent and those with graduate degrees earned 176.3 percent. The differences grew from the previous year, highlighting continued income stratification based on education level.
At the same time, the proportion of foreign students enrolled in South Korean higher education institutions stood at 4.6 percent in 2023. While this marks a steady rise from 1.7 percent in 2013 and 2.7 percent in 2018, it remains well below the OECD average of 7.4 percent.
Analysts say this suggests that South Korea’s universities have yet to fully establish themselves as global destinations, despite significant efforts to internationalize their campuses.
The nationality breakdown also reveals an overwhelming regional concentration. Of all foreign students in South Korea, 94.4 percent are from other Asian countries, compared with the OECD average of 58.3 percent.
By contrast, only small shares came from Europe (2.0 percent), Africa (1.9 percent), North America (1.1 percent), and Latin America (0.6 percent).