Parents in Their 50s Spend an Average of 570,000 Won per Month on Children's Academy Fees

Parents in South Korea spend an average of up to 570,000 won per month on their children's academy fees.

The scene of a third-year high school classroom in Seoul on the 20th of last month. Photo by Yonhap News

According to Samsung Financial Network's Monimo on the 8th, Samsung Card surveyed the average monthly payment amount for entrance exam and supplementary academies made by its members in their 30s to 50s last year, finding that those in their 50s spent the most at 570,000 won. This was followed by those in their 40s at 490,000 won per month, and those in their 30s at 360,000 won.

Samsung Card analyzed, "It can be interpreted that the older the age group, the higher the amount invested in children's education."

The month with the highest average monthly payment for entrance exam and supplementary academies was July, accounting for 14.3% of the total. August and December recorded average monthly payments of 7.4% and 7.2% of the total, respectively. Samsung Card explained that academy registrations increase when summer and winter vacations begin.

An industry insider from the card sector said, "On average, one adult in South Korea holds four cards, and parents often pay entrance exam and supplementary academy fees using multiple cards, so the actual average monthly academy fees are estimated to reach between 1 million and 2 million won."

As parents' spending on academy fees continues despite the economic downturn, large entrance exam academies made huge profits last year.

Some saw operating profits nearly double compared to the same period last year, while others surpassed 100 billion won in operating profit.

Megastudy Education, which provides Megastudy's online and offline lecture services, posted an operating profit of 134.4 billion won last year on a consolidated basis, up 35.7% from the previous year, and sales increased by 18.7% to 836 billion won.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.