What were the 2025 depression rates among Korean middle and high school students?

The Korean Educational Development Institute data put the share of middle school students who experienced feelings of depression at 26.2 percent, compared with 25.1 percent of high school students. The middle school rate was higher for the third consecutive year.

How did depression rates among Korean middle and high school students compare from 2023 to 2025?

Middle school students had higher reported rates in each of the three years: 26.3 percent versus 25.6 percent in 2023, 27.9 percent versus 27.5 percent in 2024, and 26.2 percent versus 25.1 percent in 2025.

How many Korean middle school students died by suicide in 2025 and in the first half of 2026?

In 2025, 92 of the 244 students who died by suicide were middle school students. From January through June 2026, 43 of the 112 student suicide deaths were middle school students, accounting for 38.4 percent.

More Korean middle school students experience feelings of depression: data

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Summary

Korean middle school students reported feelings of depression at a higher rate than high school students for the third consecutive year in 2025, according to data released Sunday. The rates were 26.2 percent for middle school students and 25.1 percent for high school students. Education ministry data also recorded 112 student suicides from January through June this year, including 43 middle school students.

Key Facts

The Korean Educational Development Institute defined feelings of depression as sadness or despair severe enough to interrupt daily routines for two consecutive weeks during the previous year.
In 2024, the reported rates were 27.9 percent among middle school students and 27.5 percent among high school students.
In 2023, the rates were 26.3 percent for middle school students and 25.6 percent for high school students.
A total of 244 students died by suicide in 2025, including 92 middle school students.

By Yonhap

Published Oct 25, 2026 3:35 pm KST

The proportion of Korean middle school students who experienced feelings of depression exceeded that of high school students for the third consecutive year in 2025, data showed Sunday.

The share of middle school students who said they felt depressed accounted for 26.2 percent last year, compared with 25.1 percent for high school students, according to the data by the Korean Educational Development Institute.

In the study, "feelings of depression" were defined as experiencing sadness or despair severe enough to suspend daily routines for two consecutive weeks over the past year.

In 2024, the proportion of such middle school students came to 27.9 percent, higher than 27.5 percent recorded for high school students. In 2023, middle school students experiencing feelings of depression accounted for 26.3 percent, compared with 25.6 percent for high school students.

In the January-June period of this year, a total of 112 elementary, middle and high school students died by suicide. Of them, 43, or 38.4 percent, were middle school students, according to data by the education ministry.

Last year, a total of 244 students took their own lives, and 92 of them were middle school students.

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