Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education was 23.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Costa Rica, 1973–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Costa Rica stood at 23.0%.
The figure is up 6.0% on the previous year and down 18.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Costa Rica peaked at 28.2% in 2014 and was at its lowest, 12.2%, in 1973.
That places Costa Rica 62nd out of 102 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 Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | 12.2% | — |
| 2001 | 20.0% | +64.4% |
| 2002 | 20.8% | +4.0% |
| 2003 | 20.5% | -1.3% |
| 2004 | 21.7% | +5.9% |
| 2005 | 22.3% | +2.7% |
| 2006 | 22.0% | -1.4% |
| 2007 | 24.9% | +13.2% |
| 2008 | 18.7% | -24.8% |
| 2009 | 19.0% | +1.5% |
| 2010 | 23.3% | +22.7% |
| 2012 | 27.3% | +17.1% |
| 2014 | 28.2% | +3.1% |
| 2015 | 25.8% | -8.6% |
| 2016 | 24.7% | -4.0% |
| 2017 | 21.4% | -13.5% |
| 2018 | 25.5% | +19.0% |
| 2019 | 22.5% | -11.8% |
| 2020 | 25.7% | +14.3% |
| 2021 | 21.2% | -17.4% |
| 2022 | 20.9% | -1.5% |
| 2023 | 21.7% | +3.9% |
| 2024 | 23.0% | +6.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 12.2% | 12.2% | 12.2% | 1 |
| 2000s | 21.1% | 18.7% | 24.9% | 9 |
| 2010s | 24.8% | 21.4% | 28.2% | 8 |
| 2020s | 22.5% | 20.9% | 25.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More education data for Costa Rica
- Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of secondary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,024 tertiary education (2024)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0494 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 43,058 (2024)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 2 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 4 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 68.9% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 18.3% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Costa Rica?
- Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Costa Rica was 23.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 28.2% in 2014.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.2% in 1973.
- How does Costa Rica rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- Costa Rica ranks 62nd out of 102 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica 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, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release