Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Portugal
Portugal: Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education was 25.1% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Portugal, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Portugal recorded 25.1% for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in 2024. That is the highest value across all 36 years on record.
That represents a change of up 5.8% on the previous year and up 43.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Portugal peaked at 25.1% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 1.6%, in 1970.
That places Portugal 55th out of 129 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Portugal, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 1.6% | — |
| 1981 | 3.5% | +111.6% |
| 1991 | 7.7% | +120.8% |
| 1992 | 9.0% | +17.3% |
| 1993 | 8.8% | -1.9% |
| 1994 | 9.1% | +3.6% |
| 1995 | 9.5% | +4.2% |
| 1996 | 9.3% | -2.5% |
| 1997 | 9.2% | -0.9% |
| 1998 | 6.9% | -25.4% |
| 1999 | 7.1% | +3.6% |
| 2000 | 7.3% | +2.3% |
| 2001 | 7.6% | +4.0% |
| 2002 | 7.7% | +1.7% |
| 2003 | 8.9% | +16.2% |
| 2004 | 10.2% | +14.3% |
| 2005 | 10.4% | +2.2% |
| 2006 | 11.1% | +6.0% |
| 2007 | 11.2% | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 11.6% | +3.4% |
| 2009 | 12.0% | +3.4% |
| 2010 | 12.7% | +5.7% |
| 2011 | 14.1% | +11.5% |
| 2012 | 15.2% | +7.9% |
| 2013 | 15.9% | +4.2% |
| 2014 | 17.5% | +10.2% |
| 2015 | 18.2% | +4.0% |
| 2016 | 19.0% | +4.5% |
| 2017 | 19.3% | +1.4% |
| 2018 | 18.7% | -3.0% |
| 2019 | 20.8% | +11.2% |
| 2020 | 22.5% | +8.5% |
| 2021 | 20.8% | -7.9% |
| 2022 | 23.3% | +12.3% |
| 2023 | 23.8% | +2.0% |
| 2024 | 25.1% | +5.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.6% | 1.6% | 1.6% | 1 |
| 1980s | 3.5% | 3.5% | 3.5% | 1 |
| 1990s | 8.5% | 6.9% | 9.5% | 9 |
| 2000s | 9.8% | 7.3% | 12.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 17.1% | 12.7% | 20.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 23.1% | 20.8% | 25.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Portugal
- 52 Serbia 25.4% compare
- 53 Slovakia 25.4% compare
- 54 Hong Kong, China 25.3% compare
- 56 Philippines 24.8% compare
- 57 Macau (China) 23.9% compare
- 58 Montenegro 23.7% compare
More education data for Portugal
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 52,131 (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 62.3% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 12.7% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 110.99 (2023)
- School enrollment, primary 111.0% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Portugal?
- Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Portugal was 25.1% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Portugal?
- The highest recorded value was 25.1% in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Portugal?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.6% in 1970.
- How does Portugal rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- Portugal ranks 55th out of 129 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in Portugal?
- Over the last ten years it is up 43.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Portugal 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release