Educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary was 43.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary in Saudi Arabia, 2000–2024
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in cumulative.
Analysis
The most recent figure for educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary in Saudi Arabia is 43.0%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 10 years on record.
That represents a change of up 20.5% on the previous year and up 73.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary in Saudi Arabia peaked at 43.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 12.0%, in 2000.
That places Saudi Arabia 17th out of 129 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 10 years of available data.
Educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | cumulative | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 12.0% | — |
| 2004 | 19.5% | +62.0% |
| 2013 | 24.8% | +27.4% |
| 2017 | 31.5% | +26.7% |
| 2018 | 24.8% | -21.4% |
| 2020 | 37.9% | +53.2% |
| 2021 | 33.9% | -10.7% |
| 2022 | 35.2% | +3.8% |
| 2023 | 35.7% | +1.5% |
| 2024 | 43.0% | +20.5% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 43.0% is above the median for high income countries, which is 37.8%, 1.1× the median. (56 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 43.0% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 22.5%, 1.9× the median. (13 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 15.8% | 12.0% | 19.5% | 2 |
| 2010s | 27.0% | 24.8% | 31.5% | 3 |
| 2020s | 37.1% | 33.9% | 43.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More education data for Saudi Arabia
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 99.72 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.47 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 242,375 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 26,900 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 215,559 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 214,840 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.36 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.45 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.53 % change on previous year (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary in Saudi Arabia?
- Educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary in Saudi Arabia was 43.0% in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 43.0% in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.0% in 2000.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 17th out of 129 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 73.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary, population 25+, total (%) (cumulative). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 10 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
The percentage of population ages 25 and over that attained or completed short-cycle tertiary education.