Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United States of America
United States of America: Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education was 52.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United States of America, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
United States of America recorded 52.0% for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in 2024. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.9% on the previous year and up 21.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United States of America peaked at 52.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 18.7%, in 1970.
That places United States of America 6th out of 128 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United States of America, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 18.7% | — |
| 1975 | 22.2% | +19.0% |
| 1979 | 26.9% | +21.2% |
| 1980 | 28.1% | +4.5% |
| 1981 | 28.0% | -0.4% |
| 1994 | 44.5% | +59.1% |
| 1998 | 30.7% | -31.1% |
| 1999 | 31.6% | +3.0% |
| 2000 | 32.4% | +2.4% |
| 2001 | 33.3% | +2.8% |
| 2002 | 34.2% | +2.7% |
| 2003 | 35.0% | +2.2% |
| 2004 | 37.2% | +6.4% |
| 2005 | 36.0% | -3.2% |
| 2006 | 37.6% | +4.4% |
| 2007 | 37.7% | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 38.4% | +2.0% |
| 2009 | 39.2% | +1.9% |
| 2010 | 39.9% | +1.9% |
| 2011 | 40.5% | +1.6% |
| 2012 | 41.1% | +1.5% |
| 2013 | 42.2% | +2.5% |
| 2014 | 42.9% | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 43.4% | +1.3% |
| 2016 | 44.6% | +2.7% |
| 2017 | 45.9% | +2.9% |
| 2018 | 46.4% | +1.2% |
| 2019 | 47.9% | +3.1% |
| 2020 | 49.8% | +3.9% |
| 2021 | 49.8% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 50.2% | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 51.0% | +1.6% |
| 2024 | 52.0% | +1.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 22.6% | 18.7% | 26.9% | 3 |
| 1980s | 28.0% | 28.0% | 28.1% | 2 |
| 1990s | 35.6% | 30.7% | 44.5% | 3 |
| 2000s | 36.1% | 32.4% | 39.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 43.5% | 39.9% | 47.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 50.6% | 49.8% | 52.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near United States of America
More education data for United States of America
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 1.78 million (2023)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 64.5% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 17.1% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 96.97 (2022)
- School enrollment, primary 97.0% (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United States of America?
- Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United States of America was 52.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in United States of America?
- The highest recorded value was 52.0% in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in United States of America?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.7% in 1970.
- How does United States of America rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- United States of America ranks 6th out of 128 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in United States of America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 21.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States of America 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, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release