College Fair (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, August 1 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s multicultural households are seeing marked improvements in education and living standards, with over 61% of multicultural youth entering higher education institutions in 2023 — a significant rise from 40.5% in 2021.
The gap between multicultural and general youth college enrollment rates has narrowed from 31 percentage points to 13, according to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family’s triennial nationwide survey released on Thursday.
The report, based on responses from over 16,000 households, credits expanded government support programs—such as educational outreach, language development assistance, and increased access to family support centers—for the upward trend. The percentage of multicultural students aspiring to four-year universities also climbed to 71.6%, up from 60.7% in 2021.
Economic indicators also showed improvement. Roughly 66% of multicultural families reported a monthly income of over 3 million won ($2,300), up 15 percentage points from two years ago. Homeownership rose slightly to 56.2%, while the proportion of households in rental agreements declined.
However, challenges remain. The proportion of breadwinners in unskilled labor grew from 32.4% to 39%, and caregiving stress remains high — especially related to emergency childcare for younger children and educational expenses for older ones.
Although the reported experience of discrimination among multicultural families dropped to 13%, the incidence of discrimination against children more than doubled to 4.7%. Notably, 80% of those facing discrimination reported choosing to endure it rather than take action.
“The overall trajectory shows encouraging progress,” said Choi Sung-ji, Director General for Youth and Family Policy at the Ministry. “We will continue supporting multicultural families while working to ensure that all children, regardless of background, can thrive without discrimination or social barriers.”
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
