The Education System in Korea, Republic of

Education in the country is considered as the most significant key to success. A centralized government supervises the procedure for the education of children. In general, the most crucial subjects to be considered are English, Korean, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies. South Korea was the first nation in the world to render high-speed Internet access to all primary, junior, and high school.

The academic year consists of 2 semesters. The first begins on March and ends in mid-July; the second starts in late August and closes in mid-February. The summer vacation is from mid-July to late August, and winter vacation from late-December to early February. They also consider a short vacation in mid-February to end of the same month.

Almost all students who entered in high school go for colleges at the end of the year. Students have alternatives of taking part in either early conclusion plans for college or regular admittances. Students will take the university entrance exam, recognized as Scholastic Aptitude Test and the program of almost every school is structured around the cognitive content of the entrance examination.

Prestigious foundations includes major national institutions such as Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Seoul National University, and a smattering of private institutions such as Ewha Womans University, Hanyang University, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Korea University, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Sogang University, Sungkyunkwan University and Yonsei University.

Social emphasis on education was not, however, without its problems, as it tended to accentuate class differences. In the late 1980s, possession of a college degree was considered necessary for entering the middle class; there were no alternative pathways of social advancement, with the possible exception of a military career, outside higher education. Individuals without a college education, including competent workers with vocational school backgrounds, frequently were treated as second-category citizens by their skilled, college-educated managers, in spite of the importance of their attainments for economic growth.