South Korean Lawmakers Rank as World’s Most Educated, Study Shows

The National Assembly (Image courtesy of Yonhap) SEOUL, Nov. 18 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korean lawmakers boast the highest level of academic credentials among parliamentarians worldwide, with more than one-third holding doctoral degrees, according to a recent academic study featured in The Economist on November 14. The comprehensive research, conducted by scholars from six institutions including Duke University, analyzed the educational backgrounds of legislators who served between 2015 and 2017 across 97 countries.

Among nations with populations exceeding 2 million, South Korea ranked first in the proportion of lawmakers with doctoral degrees. The study revealed that South Korean parliamentarians’ educational attainment was evenly distributed, with approximately one-third each holding doctoral, master’s, and bachelor’s degrees. Following South Korea were Ukraine, Taiwan, Slovenia, Mongolia, Romania, Poland, and the Czech Republic, though none of these countries exceeded 25% for lawmakers with doctorates.



Ukraine led the 56 countries surveyed in the proportion of legislators with master’s degrees. The study noted that advanced degrees appear to be a significant factor in Ukrainian political advancement, with every president since the country’s independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 holding a doctorate, except for current President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. In contrast to South Korea’s high proportion of doctoral degree holders, the United States Congress showed a different pattern, with fewer PhDs but more than two-thirds of its members holding master’s degrees.

The research highlighted a striking disparity with several Western European nations. In Italy, Norway, and the United Kingdom, nearly a quarter of parliamentarians had only secondary school education. Notable examples include Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker of the UK House of Commons, who did not attend university, and Matteo Salvini, Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister, who dropped out of university.

Across all 97 countries studied, an average of 78% of legislators held at least a bachelor’s degree, while 40% had obtained master’s degrees. The Economist suggested that these findings likely reflect current reality, noting that pathways into politics tend to remain consistent despite changes in government. M.

H. Lee ([email protected]).