Educational Statistics

Education Statistics Based on Students Numbers:

A Focus on the Number of Multicultural and Foreign Students and Students per Class

 

Author: Im So-Hyeon (Director/ Senior Research Fellow, Center for Educational Statistics, KEDI)

 

 In late August to early September, the results of the 2025 Basic Education Statistics Survey and the OECD Education Indicators were released. Among the published findings, the issues that attracted the greatest attention in the media were the decline in the number of kindergarten, elementary, and secondary school students; the increase in the number of multicultural students; and the growth in the number of foreign students enrolled in higher education institutions. Against this background, this paper examines trends related to student numbers, focusing on multicultural students in primary and secondary education and foreign students in higher education, and analyzes changes in educational conditions through trends in the number of students per class.

 

■ Number of Multicultural Students in Primary and Secondary Education

 

 According to the results of the 2025 Basic Education Statistics Survey, the total number of kindergarten, elementary, middle, and high school students stood at 5,551,250, representing a decrease of 133,495 (2.3%) compared to the previous year. In contrast the number of multicultural students in primary and secondary education increased by 8,394 (4.3%) year on year to 202,208 (accounting for 4.0% of the total student population). This marks the first time since the initiation of the multicultural student survey in 2012 that the number has exceeded 200,000. The proportion of multicultural students has increased annually across all school levels – elementary, middle, and high school. In particular, at the elementary school level, which shows the highest proportion of multicultural students, the number reached 116,601, accounting for 5.0% of all elementary students. The figures to middle schools and high schools also showed steady increases, rising to 51,172 students (0.5%→3.7%) and 33,622 students (0.2%→2.6%), respectively.

 

 

 

 When examined by regional classification, the proportion of multicultural students was found to be higher in township (eup/myeon) areas and remote or island regions than in metropolitan or small- and medium-sized cities across all school levels. At the elementary school level, the proportion of multicultural students was 4.1% in metropolitan areas and 4.5% in small and medium-sized cities – both below the overall elementary average of 5.0%. In contrast, the proportion reached 8.2% in township areas and 11.4% in remote and island regions. Similar patterns were observed at the middle and high school levels.

 

 

 

■ Number of Foreign Students in Higher Education Institutions

 

 The number of foreign students enrolled in degree programs at domestic higher education institutions (excluding Korea National Open University, cyber universities, and distance-learning universities) increased by 33,126 compared to the previous year, reaching a total of 177,133 students. This figure accounts for 6.4% of the total number of students enrolled in higher education institutions. Among foreign students in degree programs, Chinese nationals comprised the largest share at 38.0%, followed by students from Vietnam (22.8%), Uzbekistan (8.0%), Nepal (7.0%), and Mongolia (5.9%). Overall, students from Asian countries accounted for more than 90% of the total foreign student population.

 

 

 

 These trends are also reflected in the OECD Education Indicators 2025, which show that the proportion of foreign students in higher education in Korea has increased steadily, reaching 4.6% (an increase of 3.0%p compared to 2013 and 1.9%p compared to 2018). However, this figure remains below the OECD average of 7.4%. The proportion of foreign students holding Asian nationality stood at 89.4%, significantly higher than the OECD average of 58.3%.

 

 

■ Students per Class

 The number of students per class, calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of classes, is a key indicator of educational conditions. In Korea, this figure has shown a consistent downward trend across all school levels. However, a degree of stagnation has been observed at the middle and high school levels between 2023 and 2025. In particular, at the middle schools level, the number of students per class increased by 0.4 to 24.9 in 2025 compared to the previous year. At the high school level, after a slight increase in the previous year, the figure remained unchanged at 23.4 in 2025.

 

 

 

 Although the number of students per class has steadily declined, indicating substantial improvements in educational conditions, it remains higher than the OECD average. According to the OECD Education Indicators, in 2023 the average number of students per class was 21.6 at the elementary level (a decrease of 0.3 from 2022) and 25.7 at the middle school level (a decrease of 0.4 from 2022). These figures exceed the OECD average by 1.0 students at elementary level and 2.7 students at the middle school level.

 

 

 In summary, while the total number of students continues to decline due to a shrinking school-age population, the number of multicultural students and foreign students has shown steady growth. At the primary and secondary levels, the proportion of multicultural students has continued to expand, surpassing 200,000, while at the higher education level, foreign students enrolled in degree programs now account for 6.4% of total enrollment. These changes call for a transition beyond quantitative expansion of education toward a system that supports learners from diverse backgrounds in sustaining their studies and successfully integrating into society. To this end, it is necessary to strengthen diversity and inclusiveness through measures such as tailored support, multi-layered safety nets, and the reduction of regional disparities, while pursuing sustainable qualitative growth even amid declining student numbers.