The economic participation rate for South Korean females in their 20s exceeded that of their male counterparts for the fourth consecutive quarter in 2013, data showed Monday, as more women received college education.

According to the data by Statistics Korea, the economic participation rate among women in their 20s stood at 61 percent in the January-March period, compared to 60.7 percent for men in the same age group.

The economic participation rate refers to the portion of the population that is economically active, which includes those who are unemployed with a willingness to work, among people aged 15 years and above.

It marked the fourth consecutive quarter that the participation rate of women has surpassed the men's rate. In the April-June period last year, the rate for women, which came to 64.9 percent, hovered above the rate for men for the first time.

The employment-to-population ratio for South Korean females aged 20-29 stood at 56.5 percent in the January-March period, also hovering above their male counterparts, who posted a 55.1 percent over the cited period.

The employment-to-population ratio refers to the proportion of working people to the country's total population, whereas employment rate only takes economically active people into consideration.

The reversal is supported by an increase in college education among women, more efforts to develop themselves and delayed decisions on marriage and childbirth, experts said. The college enrollment rate for women increased to 82.4 percent in 2009, exceeding the rate for men, which was 81.6 percent.

The employment-to-population ratio among females in their 30s, however, came to 54.2 percent in the first quarter this year, lagging far behind that of their male counterparts, which posted 89.3 percent.

Experts said the divide came as females find it difficult to continue their careers after marriage and childbirth, adding the government should put its priority on making systems to help women maintain their jobs.

President Park Geun-hye earlier pledged that her government would make efforts to bolster the country's employment-to-population ratio to reach 70 percent by 2017. (Yonhap News)