This paper analyzes the impact of global governance by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on the Korean education policymaking from 1993 to 2017. This analysis also discusses the implications of educational governance in Korea within the context of a globalized world. We found that the inevitable influence of global governance can in fact serve national needs well if it is leavened by localized democratically derived experience. Awareness of this need to balance education policy decisions with input from the on-the-ground stakeholders, national concerns, and input from IOs like the OCED, is crucial to the ultimate success of educational programs worldwide. This balance and its success have both been demonstrated in Korea.