Korea, Rep.: Secondary education, pupils (% female)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2017, Korea, Rep.'s secondary education, pupils (% female) rose 0.06 percentage points on 2016 (from 47.72% to 47.78%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1987 to 2016), the average change was +0.01 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.25 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations above 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 1.6 percentage points in 1980 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.74 percentage points in 1988. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2008 to 2017 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.11 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 94% of the movement over 10 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 2017, Korea, Rep. had the 51st highest value of the 63 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 2017 ranking

• North Macedonia — 48th of 63: 47.85%
• Bulgaria — 49th of 63: 47.8%
• Türkiye — 50th of 63: 47.79%
• Switzerland — 52nd of 63: 47.68%
• Austria — 53rd of 63: 47.66%
• Norway — 54th of 63: 47.61%

What this measures

Female pupils as a percentage of total pupils at secondary level includes enrollments in public and private schools.

Limitations: The percentage of female enrollment is limited in assessing gender parity, because it's affected by the gender composition of population. Ratio of female to male in enrollment rate provides a population adjusted measure of gender parity.

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

All 47 values

Secondary education, pupils (% female) in nearby economies

• Brunei Darussalam — 49% (2018)
• China — 46.95% (2018)
• Hong Kong SAR, China — 47.57% (2018)
• Indonesia — 49.17% (2018)
• Lao PDR — 47.57% (2018)
• Macao SAR, China — 48.3% (2018)
• Malaysia — 50.48% (2018)
• Marshall Islands — 50.29% (2016)
• Myanmar — 51.9% (2018)
• Naoero — 50.4% (2016)

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 secondary education, pupils (% female)?

47.78% in 2017, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1971?

It is up 9.84 percentage points from 37.94% in 1971. The highest value was 48.54% in 1996 and the lowest 37.94% in 1971.

How does Korea, Rep. rank?

51st highest of 63 economies with data for 2017.

Is the latest change in secondary education, pupils (% female) unusual for Korea, Rep.?

In 2017, Korea, Rep.'s secondary education, pupils (% female) rose 0.06 percentage points on 2016 (from 47.72% to 47.78%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1987 to 2016), the average change was +0.01 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.25 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations above 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.ENRL.FE.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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