Korea, Rep.: Progression to secondary school (%)

Key figures

Since 1971 it is up 29.54 percentage points from 70.1% in 1971. The World Bank has no value for 13 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

In 2016, Korea, Rep.'s progression to secondary school (%) fell 0.01 percentage points on 2015 (from 99.65% to 99.64%).

Across the 25 yearly changes before that (1972 to 2015), the average change was +0.76 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.88 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 6.07 percentage points in 1977 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.38 percentage points in 1972. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2007 to 2016 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.04 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 84% of the movement over 8 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2016, Korea, Rep. had the 13th highest value of the 46 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Korea, Rep. in the 2016 ranking

• Poland — 10th of 46: 99.77%
• Cyprus — 11th of 46: 99.74%
• Norway — 12th of 46: 99.67%
• Israel — 14th of 46: 99.58%
• Bhutan — 15th of 46: 99.58%
• Sweden — 16th of 46: 99.57%

What this measures

Progression to secondary school refers to the number of new entrants to the first grade of secondary school in a given year as a percentage of the number of students enrolled in the final grade of primary school in the previous year (minus the number of repeaters from the last grade of primary education in the given year).

Limitations: The quality of data on the transition rate is affected when new entrants and repeaters are not correctly distinguished. Students who interrupt their studies after completing primary education could also affect data quality.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 33 values

Progression to secondary school (%) in nearby economies

• Brunei Darussalam — 99.8% (2017)
• Cambodia — 89.85% (2017)
• Fiji — 98.02% (2015)
• Hong Kong SAR, China — 99.93% (2017)
• Indonesia — 91.5% (2016)
• Kiribati — 96.34% (2015)
• Lao PDR — 86.18% (2017)
• Macao SAR, China — 99.2% (2017)
• Malaysia — 91.05% (2016)
• Mongolia — 99.27% (2017)
• Philippines

More education data for Korea, Rep.

• Primary school starting age (years) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 12 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, pupils — 2.51 million (2024)
• Primary education, teachers — 173,133 (2024)
• Primary education, teachers (% female) — 76.66% (2024)
• Secondary education, pupils — 2.66 million (2024)
• Secondary education, teachers — 233,046 (2024)
• Secondary education, teachers, female — 151,467 (2024)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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Questions people ask

What is Korea, Rep.'s progression to secondary school (%)?

99.64% in 2016, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1971?

It is up 29.54 percentage points from 70.1% in 1971. The highest value was 99.99% in 2008 and the lowest 68.72% in 1972.

How does Korea, Rep. rank?

13th highest of 46 economies with data for 2016.

Is the latest change in progression to secondary school (%) unusual for Korea, Rep.?

In 2016, Korea, Rep.'s progression to secondary school (%) fell 0.01 percentage points on 2015 (from 99.65% to 99.64%). Across the 25 yearly changes before that (1972 to 2015), the average change was +0.76 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.88 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.SEC.PROG.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://uis.unesco.org/bdds, publisher: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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