Educational attainment rate … both short-cycle tertiary urban in Iceland
Iceland: Educational attainment rate … both short-cycle tertiary urban was 44.5% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Iceland, 1999–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Iceland recorded 44.5% for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.7% on the previous year and up 23.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Iceland peaked at 45.1% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 24.9%, in 2004.
That places Iceland 19th out of 101 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 19 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate … both short-cycle tertiary urban in Iceland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 26.1% | — |
| 2000 | 27.8% | +6.2% |
| 2001 | 28.2% | +1.7% |
| 2002 | 29.7% | +5.2% |
| 2004 | 24.9% | -16.2% |
| 2005 | 27.0% | +8.6% |
| 2011 | 37.3% | +37.9% |
| 2012 | 35.4% | -5.0% |
| 2013 | 35.9% | +1.5% |
| 2014 | 37.7% | +4.8% |
| 2015 | 39.3% | +4.3% |
| 2016 | 40.5% | +3.1% |
| 2017 | 42.6% | +5.3% |
| 2018 | 44.9% | +5.3% |
| 2019 | 45.1% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 44.7% | -0.8% |
| 2021 | 42.3% | -5.4% |
| 2022 | 42.9% | +1.5% |
| 2023 | 44.5% | +3.7% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 44.5% is above the median for high income countries, which is 40.2%, 1.1× the median. (41 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 44.5% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 40.3%, 1.1× the median. (40 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Educational attainment rate … both short-cycle tertiary urban in Iceland 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | +37.9% | 27.0% | 37.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 26.1% | 26.1% | 26.1% | 1 |
| 2000s | 27.5% | 24.9% | 29.7% | 5 |
| 2010s | 39.9% | 35.4% | 45.1% | 9 |
| 2020s | 43.6% | 42.3% | 44.7% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More education data for Iceland
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 98.24 (2023)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 98.18 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 6,661 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 6,167 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 37,056 (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 32,314 (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.17 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Iceland?
- Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Iceland was 44.5% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 45.1% in 2019.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 24.9% in 2004.
- How does Iceland rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- Iceland ranks 19th out of 101 countries with data for 2023.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 23.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland 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, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 19 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release