Korea, Dem. People's Rep.
Last updated May 3, 2026
Composite GEFRI Score
Severely underprepared
Korea, Dem. People's Rep. shows severely limited readiness to meet the challenges and opportunities of education in a rapidly changing world (32nd percentile worldwide). Key structural conditions limit capacity to plan, implement, and sustain forward-looking reforms. Higher scores indicate a system that is better prepared to anticipate and shape the future of learning.
- Global percentile
- 32nd
- Global rank
- #122
- Regional rank
- #19
- Viewing data for
Country profile
Korea, Dem. People's Rep. trails global peers in Infrastructure (37, 21st percentile) and Governance (9, 2nd percentile). A coordinated reform effort is needed to strengthen education futures readiness.
Uneven scores across dimensions highlight areas that need targeted coordination. Electricity access remains uneven, limiting the baseline for digital expansion. Limited tertiary enrollment narrows future talent pipelines and innovation capacity.
A large research workforce accelerates experimentation, technology adoption, and applied innovation. Policy execution and regulatory capacity remain weak, leaving reforms fragmented and hard to sustain. Gender parity across secondary pathways reflects sustained commitment to equitable participation.
Note: Because many indicators are imputed, these findings should be treated as provisional until more reported data arrives.
Key insights
- Falls below many peers at the 32nd percentile.
- Places 122nd worldwide.
- Holds a regional position of 19th within East Asia & Pacific.
- Scores range from Innovation (62.8) to Governance (8.8), reflecting variation across dimensions.
- Trails regional peers most clearly in Governance.
Regional peers: East Asia & Pacific
Composite GEFRI Score
| Global rank | Regional rank | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 1 | Hong Kong SAR, China | 78.84 |
| 3 | 2 | Korea, Rep. | 78.17 |
| 4 | 3 | Singapore | 77.81 |
| 12 | 4 | Australia | 75.95 |
| 13 | 5 | Japan | 75.88 |
| 19 | 6 | New Zealand | 73.08 |
| — | — | NauruMicrostate | 61.59 |
| — | — | Northern Mariana IslandsMicrostate | 61.43 |
| 48 | 7 | Brunei Darussalam | 61.13 |
| — | — | American SamoaMicrostate | 61.09 |
| 49 | 8 | Macao SAR, China | 61.06 |
| — | — | GuamMicrostate | 60.74 |
| 50 | 9 | Thailand | 60.74 |
| 53 | 10 | Indonesia | 60.55 |
| 55 | 11 | Fiji | 60.34 |
| — | — | New CaledoniaMicrostate | 59.24 |
| — | — | French PolynesiaMicrostate | 58.11 |
| — | — | PalauMicrostate | 57.53 |
| 67 | 12 | Viet Nam | 57.46 |
| 69 | 13 | Mongolia | 57.00 |
| 73 | 14 | Malaysia | 56.66 |
| 77 | 15 | China | 55.08 |
| 85 | 16 | Philippines | 52.64 |
| — | — | SamoaMicrostate | 51.59 |
| — | — | TuvaluFCSMicrostate | 49.72 |
| — | — | TongaMicrostate | 48.28 |
| — | — | KiribatiFCSMicrostate | 46.97 |
| — | — | Marshall IslandsFCSMicrostate | 46.38 |
| — | — | Micronesia, Fed. Sts.FCSMicrostate | 42.67 |
| 110 | 17 | Timor-LesteFCS | 41.47 |
| 111 | 18 | Vanuatu | 41.25 |
| 122 | 19 | Korea, Dem. People's Rep. | 36.56 |
| 127 | 20 | Cambodia | 33.92 |
| 128 | 21 | MyanmarFCS | 33.78 |
| 136 | 22 | Lao PDR | 31.66 |
| 138 | 23 | Solomon IslandsFCS | 31.58 |
| 151 | 24 | Papua New GuineaFCS | 26.21 |