Univ. Entrance Drops for 1st Time since ’90 Write 2010-03-07 13:10:38   Update 2010-03-07 15:20:18

The ratio of high school graduates entering university has fallen for the first time since 1990.

Statistics Korea said in its social indices report for last year that 82 percent of high school graduates went on to college last year, down from 83.8 percent in 2008.

The female university entrance rate was 82.4 percent, besting that of males at 81.6 percent for the first time.

Experts say they are unsure whether the fall is temporary or if the entrance rate has peaked and is falling.

I’m very interested in this. Is this just an anomaly or is it a trend in the de-emphasis of university education? Is there an increase in attending non-Korean institutions?