Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in New Zealand
New Zealand: Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education was 34.5% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in New Zealand, 2001–2020
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 34.5% for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in 2020. That is the highest value across all 8 years on record.
That represents a change of up 5.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in New Zealand peaked at 34.5% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 24.0%, in 2001.
New Zealand ranks 27th of 129 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 24.0% | — |
| 2006 | 28.1% | +16.9% |
| 2011 | 32.8% | +17.0% |
| 2012 | 31.6% | -3.6% |
| 2014 | 29.2% | -7.7% |
| 2015 | 28.1% | -3.7% |
| 2016 | 30.4% | +8.1% |
| 2020 | 34.5% | +13.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 26.0% | 24.0% | 28.1% | 2 |
| 2010s | 30.4% | 28.1% | 32.8% | 5 |
| 2020s | 34.5% | 34.5% | 34.5% | 1 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More education data for New Zealand
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) 2.77 % change on previous year (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 22,505 (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 4,092 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 151,526 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 2 % change on previous year (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 99,830 (2024)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number) 3.98 % change on previous year (2024)
- Theoretical duration of primary education (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of pre-primary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (pre-primary to post-secondary non) 0.0494 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in New Zealand?
- Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in New Zealand was 34.5% in 2020, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 34.5% in 2020.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 24.0% in 2001.
- How does New Zealand rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- New Zealand ranks 27th out of 129 countries with data for 2020.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this New Zealand 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, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 8 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release