Educational attainment rate, completed Master's or equivalent in South Africa
South Africa: Educational attainment rate, completed Master's or equivalent was 1.17 GPIA in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed Master's or equivalent in South Africa, 2014–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in GPIA.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 1.17 GPIA for educational attainment rate, completed master's or equivalent in 2024.
That represents a change of up 53.2% on the previous year and up 87.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed master's or equivalent in South Africa peaked at 1.54 GPIA in 2015 and was at its lowest, 0.625 GPIA, in 2014.
South Africa ranks 23rd of 56 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Educational attainment rate, completed Master's or equivalent in South Africa, year by year
| Year | GPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 0.625 GPIA | — |
| 2015 | 1.54 GPIA | +146.7% |
| 2016 | 0.8085 GPIA | -47.6% |
| 2017 | 1.07 GPIA | +32.1% |
| 2021 | 1.36 GPIA | +27.3% |
| 2023 | 0.7662 GPIA | -43.7% |
| 2024 | 1.17 GPIA | +53.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 1.01 GPIA | 0.625 GPIA | 1.54 GPIA | 4 |
| 2020s | 1.1 GPIA | 0.7662 GPIA | 1.36 GPIA | 3 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,023 tertiary education (2023)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0495 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 287,310 (2023)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 4 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 67.4% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 25.7% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 14 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 7 years (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed master's or equivalent in South Africa?
- Educational attainment rate, completed master's or equivalent in South Africa was 1.17 GPIA in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed master's or equivalent recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 1.54 GPIA in 2015.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed master's or equivalent recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.625 GPIA in 2014.
- How does South Africa rank for educational attainment rate, completed master's or equivalent?
- South Africa ranks 23rd out of 56 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed master's or equivalent rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 87.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed Master's or equivalent education or higher, population 25+ years, rural, adjusted gender parity index (GPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 7 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release