Educational attainment rate, completed … short-cycle tertiary both in Mexico

Mexico: Educational attainment rate, completed … short-cycle tertiary both was 19.7% in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
19.7%
Change on year
up 0.9%
World rank
76th
of 129 countries
All-time high
19.7%
in 2025
All-time low
5.3%
in 1980
Years of data
27
1980–2025

Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Mexico, 1980–2025

51015201980200220251980: 5.3 %1990: 9.2 %2000: 9 %2002: 10.8 %2003: 11.1 %2004: 12.5 %2005: 12.1 %2006: 14.9 %2007: 14.4 %2008: 14.5 %2009: 15.5 %2010: 14.4 %2011: 13.7 %2012: 16.3 %2013: 14.8 %2014: 14.4 %2015: 16.3 %2016: 15.2 %2017: 15.8 %2018: 16.4 %2019: 16.5 %2020: 18.8 %2021: 18.3 %2022: 18.5 %2023: 18.8 %2024: 19.6 %2025: 19.7 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2025, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Mexico stood at 19.7%. That is the highest value across all 27 years on record.

That represents a change of up 0.9% on the previous year and up 21.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Mexico peaked at 19.7% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 5.3%, in 1980.

Mexico ranks 76th of 129 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.

Educational attainment rate, completed … short-cycle tertiary both in Mexico, year by year

Annual values for Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education or higher, population 25+ years, both sexes (%) in Mexico, 1980 to 2025.
Year % Change
1980 5.3% —
1990 9.2% +72.1%
2000 9.0% -1.5%
2002 10.8% +19.5%
2003 11.1% +2.5%
2004 12.5% +13.3%
2005 12.1% -3.4%
2006 14.9% +23.2%
2007 14.4% -3.1%
2008 14.5% +0.1%
2009 15.5% +7.0%
2010 14.4% -6.8%
2011 13.7% -4.9%
2012 16.3% +19.0%
2013 14.8% -9.4%
2014 14.4% -2.3%
2015 16.3% +12.8%
2016 15.2% -6.9%
2017 15.8% +4.4%
2018 16.4% +4.0%
2019 16.5% +0.4%
2020 18.8% +13.7%
2021 18.3% -2.5%
2022 18.5% +1.1%
2023 18.8% +1.4%
2024 19.6% +4.2%
2025 19.7% +0.9%

Mexico compared with similar countries

  • Mexico's 19.7% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 20.1%, 98% of the median. (38 countries reporting)
  • Mexico's 19.7% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 18.5%, 1.1× the median. (23 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Educational attainment rate, completed … short-cycle tertiary both in Mexico 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.

YearChange FromTo
1990 +72.1% 5.3% 9.2%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 5.3% 5.3% 5.3% 1
1990s 9.2% 9.2% 9.2% 1
2000s 12.8% 9.0% 15.5% 9
2010s 15.4% 13.7% 16.5% 10
2020s 18.9% 18.3% 19.7% 6

Countries ranked near Mexico

  1. 73 Austria 21.3% compare
  2. 74 Albania 20.4% compare
  3. 75 Costa Rica 20.4% compare
  4. 77 Argentina 19.6% compare
  5. 78 Trinidad and Tobago 19.2% compare
  6. 79 Kuwait 18.5% compare

See the full ranking of 129 places →

More education data for Mexico

All data for Mexico →

Frequently asked questions

What is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Mexico?
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Mexico was 19.7% in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Mexico?
The highest recorded value was 19.7% in 2025.
What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Mexico?
The lowest recorded value was 5.3% in 1980.
How does Mexico rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
Mexico ranks 76th out of 129 countries with data for 2025.
Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in Mexico?
Over the last ten years it is up 21.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Mexico 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, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Mexico. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 13 November 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/educational-attainment-rate-completed-short-cycle-tertiary-education-or-higher-population/mexico/

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About this data

Indicator
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education or higher, population 25+ years, both sexes (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics)
Coverage
129 places, 2,142 data points, 1970–2025
Last refreshed

February 2026 Data Release