Educational attainment rate … adjusted short-cycle tertiary urban in United States
United States: Educational attainment rate … adjusted short-cycle tertiary urban was 1.07 GPIA in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United States, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in GPIA.
Analysis
The most recent figure for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United States is 1.07 GPIA, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 3.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United States peaked at 1.07 GPIA in 2022 and was at its lowest, 0.7302 GPIA, in 1970.
United States ranks 43rd of 99 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate … adjusted short-cycle tertiary urban in United States, year by year
| Year | GPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 0.7302 GPIA | — |
| 2004 | 0.9691 GPIA | +32.7% |
| 2005 | 0.9685 GPIA | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 0.9956 GPIA | +2.8% |
| 2007 | 0.9746 GPIA | -2.1% |
| 2008 | 0.9963 GPIA | +2.2% |
| 2009 | 1.01 GPIA | +1.7% |
| 2010 | 1.03 GPIA | +1.6% |
| 2011 | 1.02 GPIA | -0.9% |
| 2012 | 1.01 GPIA | -1.1% |
| 2013 | 1.02 GPIA | +1.1% |
| 2014 | 1.04 GPIA | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 1.04 GPIA | +0.3% |
| 2016 | 1.04 GPIA | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 1.04 GPIA | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 1.05 GPIA | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 1.05 GPIA | +0.5% |
| 2020 | 1.06 GPIA | +0.7% |
| 2021 | 1.07 GPIA | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 1.07 GPIA | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 1.06 GPIA | -1.0% |
| 2024 | 1.07 GPIA | +1.0% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 1.07 GPIA is below the median for high income countries, which is 1.1 GPIA, 98% of the median. (41 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Educational attainment rate … adjusted short-cycle tertiary urban in United States changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | +32.7% | 0.7302 GPIA | 0.9691 GPIA |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.7302 GPIA | 0.7302 GPIA | 0.7302 GPIA | 1 |
| 2000s | 0.9862 GPIA | 0.9685 GPIA | 1.01 GPIA | 6 |
| 2010s | 1.03 GPIA | 1.01 GPIA | 1.05 GPIA | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.07 GPIA | 1.06 GPIA | 1.07 GPIA | 5 |
Countries ranked near United States
More education data for United States
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 96.21 (2022)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 96.02 (2022)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1.74 million (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 419,732 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 4.34 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 4.14 million (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 25.35 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 23.83 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.33 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United States?
- Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United States was 1.07 GPIA in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 1.07 GPIA in 2022.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.7302 GPIA in 1970.
- How does United States rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- United States ranks 43rd out of 99 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States 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, urban, adjusted gender parity index (GPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release