Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in France

France: Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education was 22.1% in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
22.1%
Change on year
down 20.4%
World rank
31st
of 89 countries
All-time high
27.8%
in 2019
All-time low
8.9%
in 1993
Years of data
27
1993–2020

Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in France, 1993–2020

10152025301993200620201993: 8.9 %1994: 9.2 %1995: 9.7 %1996: 9.2 %1997: 9.9 %1998: 11.1 %1999: 11.5 %2000: 11.9 %2001: 12.5 %2002: 13.2 %2003: 11.5 %2004: 14.2 %2005: 15.3 %2007: 17.4 %2008: 19 %2009: 19.6 %2010: 18.9 %2011: 20.1 %2012: 20.8 %2013: 22 %2014: 23.6 %2015: 25.5 %2016: 24.8 %2017: 25.7 %2018: 21.4 %2019: 27.8 %2020: 22.1 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2020, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in France stood at 22.1%.

The figure is down 20.4% on the previous year and up 16.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in France peaked at 27.8% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 8.9%, in 1993.

That places France 31st out of 89 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 9.9% 8.9% 11.5% 7
2000s 15.0% 11.5% 19.6% 9
2010s 23.0% 18.9% 27.8% 10
2020s 22.1% 22.1% 22.1% 1

Countries ranked near France

  1. 28 Poland 26.9% compare
  2. 29 Moldova 24.3% compare
  3. 30 Zimbabwe 22.1% compare
  4. 32 Philippines 21.7% compare
  5. 33 Brunei Darussalam 20.6% compare
  6. 34 Jordan 20.6% compare

See the full ranking of 89 places →

More education data for France

All data for France →

Frequently asked questions

What is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in France?
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in France was 22.1% in 2020, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in France?
The highest recorded value was 27.8% in 2019.
What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in France?
The lowest recorded value was 8.9% in 1993.
How does France rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
France ranks 31st out of 89 countries with data for 2020.
Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in France?
Over the last ten years it is up 16.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this France data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education or higher, population 25+ years, rural, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in France. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 21 August 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/educational-attainment-rate-completed-short-cycle-tertiary-education-or-higher-population-10/france/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://education.statizoid.com/stat/educational-attainment-rate-completed-short-cycle-tertiary-education-or-higher-population-10/france/">Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in France</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education or higher, population 25+ years, rural, female (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics)
Coverage
89 places, 1,500 data points, 1970–2025
Last refreshed

February 2026 Data Release