How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and South Korea?

44 years are reported by both, from 1971 to 2018.

Where does this data come from?

UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Japan vs South Korea: Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male

Japan

2.01 million number

in 2018

South Korea

1.78 million number

in 2018

Japan rank

10th

South Korea rank

12th

Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male over time

Japan
South Korea

How they compare

Japan currently reports 2.01 million number against 1.78 million number in South Korea, a difference of 232,690 number.

That makes Japan's figure about 1.1 times South Korea's.

Across all 44 years both countries report, Japan has been ahead every year.

Japan ranks 10th and South Korea ranks 12th of 187 countries.

Japan has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Japan	South Korea	Difference	Ahead
1970s	1.48 million number	221,823 number	1.26 million number	Japan
1980s	1.59 million number	874,173 number	711,515 number	Japan
1990s	1.97 million number	1.38 million number	595,766 number	Japan
2000s	2.18 million number	2.00 million number	173,701 number	Japan
2010s	2.05 million number	1.94 million number	112,649 number	Japan

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male, Japan or South Korea?: Japan, at 2.01 million number against 1.78 million number in South Korea as of 2018.
What is the difference in enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male between Japan and South Korea?: 232,690 number, with Japan ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and South Korea?: 44 years are reported by both, from 1971 to 2018.
How do Japan and South Korea rank globally for enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male?: Japan ranks 10th and South Korea ranks 12th of 187 countries.
Where does this data come from?: UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator: Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number)
Unit: number
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 232 places, 7,125 data points, 1970–2020
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

The total number of male students enrolled at public and private tertiary education institutions.