Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Africa
South Africa: Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education was 20.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Africa, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 20.9% for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in 2024. That is the highest value across all 23 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 28.8% on the previous year and up 124.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Africa peaked at 20.9% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 5.5%, in 2006.
That places South Africa 66th out of 101 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 23 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 5.6% | — |
| 2002 | 6.7% | +19.5% |
| 2003 | 7.8% | +16.5% |
| 2004 | 7.0% | -10.1% |
| 2005 | 5.6% | -20.2% |
| 2006 | 5.5% | -1.5% |
| 2007 | 5.8% | +5.1% |
| 2008 | 6.3% | +9.0% |
| 2009 | 7.9% | +24.7% |
| 2010 | 8.4% | +6.3% |
| 2011 | 8.3% | -1.3% |
| 2012 | 8.6% | +4.2% |
| 2013 | 14.4% | +67.5% |
| 2014 | 9.3% | -35.3% |
| 2015 | 10.2% | +9.1% |
| 2017 | 15.4% | +51.6% |
| 2018 | 14.8% | -4.1% |
| 2019 | 15.2% | +2.8% |
| 2020 | 14.8% | -3.0% |
| 2021 | 19.2% | +29.9% |
| 2022 | 15.5% | -19.0% |
| 2023 | 16.3% | +4.6% |
| 2024 | 20.9% | +28.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.6% | 5.6% | 5.6% | 1 |
| 2000s | 6.6% | 5.5% | 7.9% | 8 |
| 2010s | 11.6% | 8.3% | 15.4% | 9 |
| 2020s | 17.3% | 14.8% | 20.9% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) -2.55 % change on previous year (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 225,583 (2023)
- Teachers in primary education, male (number), gaps filled 61,727 (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) 748,573 (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, female (number) -1.43 % change on previous year (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number), gaps 444,590 (2023)
- Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, male (number) -4.38 % change on previous year (2023)
- 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 South Africa?
- Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in South Africa was 20.9% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 20.9% in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.5% in 2006.
- How does South Africa rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- South Africa ranks 66th out of 101 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 124.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa 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.
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CSV · JSON — 23 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release