Nearly 700 university students majoring in education to become elementary school teachers dropped out last year.

According to data analysis by Jongro Academy, a private institute specializing in university admissions, on Monday, 667 students dropped out of ten universities of education and three elementary education university programs in 2023, up 34-point-five percent on-year.

In the capital area, 96 had suspended learning at the Seoul National University of Education, and another 102 from the Gyeongin National University of Education.

The academy highlighted the urgent need to devise measures to retain students in these departments as there's been a declining number of new students while more and more choose to drop out as recent surveys show job satisfaction among educators hitting an all-time low.