Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) by country

The total number of students enrolled at public and private tertiary education institutions.

Countries reporting

190

Highest

46.99 million number

China

Lowest

301 number

French Polynesia

Median

177,958 number

Years covered

1970–2020

Data points

8,058

What the numbers show

Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number) is currently reported for 190 countries. The highest value is 46.99 million number in China; the lowest is 301 number in French Polynesia.

The median across all reporting countries is 177,958 number, and the mean is 1.19 million number.

Over the past decade 145 countries rose and 38 fell. The largest increase was in Djibouti (up 848.6%), and the largest decrease in British Virgin Islands (down 71.3%).

Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes: full country ranking

#	Country	Latest	Year	10-year change	Trend
1	China	46.99 million number	2019	up 60.4%	volatile
2	India	35.15 million number	2019	up 90.0%	volatile
3	United States	18.94 million number	2018	—	flat
4	Brazil	8.74 million number	2018	up 46.7%	volatile
5	Indonesia	8.04 million number	2018	up 81.9%	volatile
6	Turkey	7.56 million number	2018	up 198.5%	volatile
7	Russia	5.77 million number	2018	down 38.9%	rising
8	Mexico	4.56 million number	2018	up 73.9%	volatile
9	Japan	3.86 million number	2018	down 1.9%	rising
10	Bangladesh	3.70 million number	2019	up 133.6%	volatile
11	Iran	3.62 million number	2018	up 6.6%	volatile
12	Philippines	3.59 million number	2017	up 44.5%	rising
13	Argentina	3.14 million number	2017	up 42.2%	volatile
14	Germany	3.13 million number	2018	up 12.5%	rising
15	South Korea	3.08 million number	2018	down 3.8%	volatile
16	Egypt	2.91 million number	2017	up 17.3%	volatile
17	France	2.62 million number	2018	up 21.0%	rising
18	United Kingdom	2.47 million number	2018	up 5.9%	rising
19	Thailand	2.41 million number	2016	up 3.1%	volatile
20	Colombia	2.41 million number	2018	up 61.9%	volatile
21	Venezuela	2.12 million number	2009	up 217.8%	volatile
22	Spain	2.05 million number	2018	up 15.2%	rising
23	Vietnam	1.97 million number	2019	up 10.8%	volatile
24	Italy	1.90 million number	2018	down 5.9%	rising
25	Peru	1.90 million number	2017	up 99.3%	volatile
26	Pakistan	1.88 million number	2018	up 92.9%	volatile
27	Australia	1.68 million number	2018	—	volatile
28	Saudi Arabia	1.65 million number	2019	up 118.1%	volatile
29	Canada	1.62 million number	2018	up 12.3%	falling
30	Ukraine	1.60 million number	2019	down 42.8%	rising
31	Algeria	1.60 million number	2018	up 77.5%	volatile
32	Nigeria	1.51 million number	2011	up 116.5%	volatile
33	Poland	1.49 million number	2018	down 31.1%	volatile
34	Chile	1.25 million number	2018	up 55.9%	volatile
35	Malaysia	1.22 million number	2019	up 21.7%	volatile
37	Morocco	1.12 million number	2019	up 167.3%	volatile
38	Myanmar	932,199 number	2018	up 83.6%	volatile
39	Netherlands	889,506 number	2018	up 47.7%	rising
40	Greece	766,874 number	2018	up 27.2%	volatile
41	Ethiopia	757,175 number	2014	up 339.9%	volatile
42	Syria	697,415 number	2016	up 63.9%	volatile
43	Kazakhstan	685,045 number	2019	down 9.5%	rising
44	Ecuador	669,437 number	2015	up 25.2%	volatile
45	Sudan	653,088 number	2015	up 79.4%	rising
46	Kenya	562,521 number	2017	up 395.5%	volatile
47	Dominican Republic	556,523 number	2017	up 93.9%	volatile
48	Romania	538,871 number	2018	down 49.0%	volatile
49	Belgium	515,530 number	2018	up 28.4%	rising
50	Ghana	496,148 number	2019	up 144.0%	volatile
51	Democratic Republic of Congo	464,678 number	2016	up 102.5%	volatile
52	Nepal	438,177 number	2019	up 51.5%	volatile
53	Sweden	431,065 number	2018	up 5.9%	rising
54	Austria	430,195 number	2018	up 28.7%	volatile
55	Iraq	424,908 number	2005	up 56.5%	volatile
56	Belarus	389,327 number	2018	down 28.5%	rising
57	Libya	375,028 number	2003	up 414.4%	volatile
58	Israel	374,305 number	2018	up 15.1%	volatile
59	Afghanistan	370,610 number	2018	up 289.4%	volatile
60	Guatemala	366,674 number	2015	up 56.8%	volatile
61	Uzbekistan	361,968 number	2019	up 20.3%	falling
62	Portugal	356,390 number	2018	down 5.4%	volatile
63	Cameroon	330,793 number	2018	up 124.1%	volatile
64	Czechia	329,036 number	2018	down 16.2%	volatile
65	Sri Lanka	325,868 number	2019	up 24.5%	volatile
66	Jordan	320,896 number	2018	up 26.0%	volatile
67	Denmark	310,903 number	2018	up 34.8%	rising
68	Switzerland	306,743 number	2018	up 36.7%	rising
69	Hong Kong	297,934 number	2019	up 17.2%	volatile
70	Cuba	296,028 number	2018	down 70.0%	volatile
71	Finland	294,516 number	2018	down 4.9%	rising
72	Norway	288,739 number	2018	up 35.8%	rising
73	Hungary	283,350 number	2018	down 31.5%	volatile
74	New Zealand	267,796 number	2018	up 4.4%	volatile
75	Yemen	267,498 number	2011	up 38.3%	rising
76	Tunisia	267,154 number	2019	down 27.6%	volatile
77	Honduras	266,908 number	2018	up 80.7%	volatile
78	Tajikistan	265,426 number	2017	up 47.7%	rising
79	Angola	253,287 number	2016	up 420.2%	volatile
80	Serbia	249,771 number	2019	up 5.9%	rising
81	Lebanon	242,642 number	2019	up 21.5%	rising
82	Bulgaria	236,335 number	2018	down 10.6%	rising
83	Ireland	231,201 number	2018	up 29.5%	volatile
84	Paraguay	225,211 number	2010	up 171.1%	volatile
85	Cambodia	222,879 number	2019	up 32.7%	volatile
86	Costa Rica	221,811 number	2019	up 13.8%	volatile
87	Kyrgyzstan	218,660 number	2019	down 18.1%	rising
88	Azerbaijan	218,279 number	2019	up 21.1%	rising
89	Cote d'Ivoire	217,914 number	2017	up 39.0%	volatile
90	Palestine	217,880 number	2019	up 19.3%	rising
91	Puerto Rico	216,742 number	2018	down 4.7%	rising
92	Mozambique	213,930 number	2018	up 183.5%	volatile
93	Singapore	198,047 number	2018	down 0.3%	volatile
94	Senegal	195,207 number	2019	up 106.9%	volatile
95	United Arab Emirates	191,794 number	2017	up 138.9%	volatile
96	El Salvador	190,519 number	2018	up 37.4%	rising
97	Uganda	165,396 number	2014	up 87.2%	volatile
98	Croatia	164,826 number	2018	up 14.9%	rising
99	Uruguay	162,463 number	2017	up 28.6%	rising
100	Panama	161,102 number	2016	up 23.1%	volatile
101	Mongolia	155,248 number	2018	up 2.5%	volatile
102	Tanzania	154,035 number	2019	up 81.0%	volatile
103	Georgia	151,226 number	2019	up 58.8%	falling
104	Slovakia	144,447 number	2018	down 37.1%	rising
105	Madagascar	143,759 number	2018	up 131.6%	volatile
106	Albania	139,043 number	2019	up 49.3%	volatile
107	Zimbabwe	135,575 number	2015	up 43.3%	volatile
108	Burkina Faso	132,569 number	2019	up 178.6%	volatile
109	Benin	132,429 number	2018	up 110.5%	volatile
110	Oman	119,184 number	2019	up 57.4%	volatile
111	Lithuania	118,287 number	2018	down 42.2%	rising
112	Kuwait	117,945 number	2019	up 219.9%	volatile
113	Guinea	117,943 number	2014	up 585.0%	volatile
114	Togo	101,387 number	2019	up 81.2%	volatile
115	Laos	101,342 number	2019	down 10.6%	volatile
116	Nicaragua	100,363 number	2002	up 180.9%	volatile
117	Armenia	92,087 number	2019	down 37.0%	rising
118	Bosnia and Herzegovina	89,016 number	2019	down 15.6%	rising
119	Mali	83,150 number	2015	up 267.4%	volatile
120	Latvia	81,602 number	2018	down 36.1%	rising
121	Moldova	81,435 number	2019	down 39.7%	rising
122	Niger	80,415 number	2019	up 402.8%	volatile
123	Slovenia	76,534 number	2018	down 33.7%	rising
124	Jamaica	74,537 number	2015	up 56.6%	volatile
125	Rwanda	72,128 number	2019	up 30.6%	volatile
126	Turkmenistan	65,890 number	2019	up 48.4%	falling
127	North Macedonia	60,110 number	2018	down 8.2%	rising
128	Zambia	56,680 number	2012	up 144.8%	volatile
129	Namibia	56,046 number	2017	up 325.1%	volatile
130	Congo	54,821 number	2017	up 134.3%	volatile
131	Botswana	50,846 number	2019	up 6.2%	volatile
132	Bahrain	47,193 number	2019	up 17.5%	volatile
133	Cyprus	47,169 number	2018	up 83.6%	volatile
134	Estonia	45,773 number	2018	down 32.9%	rising
135	Liberia	43,883 number	2012	down 16.0%	volatile
136	Burundi	41,869 number	2018	up 91.6%	volatile
137	Chad	41,821 number	2015	up 238.0%	volatile
138	Mauritius	38,850 number	2017	up 69.1%	volatile
139	Qatar	34,941 number	2019	up 166.1%	volatile
140	Macao	34,279 number	2019	up 19.0%	rising
141	Mauritania	23,417 number	2019	up 87.1%	volatile
142	Montenegro	22,709 number	2019	down 0.1%	rising
143	Lesotho	21,586 number	2018	up 154.0%	volatile
144	Iceland	17,835 number	2018	up 7.2%	volatile
145	Trinidad and Tobago	16,751 number	2004	up 105.0%	rising
146	Somalia	15,672 number	1987	up 668.2%	volatile
147	Malta	15,220 number	2018	up 60.7%	volatile
148	Maldives	14,484 number	2017	up 230.2%	volatile
149	Fiji	12,717 number	2005	up 60.8%	volatile
151	Barbados	12,421 number	2011	up 55.7%	volatile
152	Bhutan	12,248 number	2020	up 122.7%	volatile
153	Malawi	12,203 number	2011	up 195.5%	volatile
154	Cape Verde	11,659 number	2018	up 75.1%	volatile
155	Brunei	11,064 number	2019	up 81.2%	volatile
156	Eritrea	10,231 number	2016	up 121.8%	volatile
157	Gabon	10,076 number	2003	up 146.7%	volatile
158	Papua New Guinea	9,943 number	1999	up 55.4%	rising
159	Belize	9,830 number	2019	up 41.0%	volatile
160	Grenada	9,260 number	2018	up 38.4%	volatile
161	Sierra Leone	9,041 number	2002	up 90.7%	volatile
162	Guyana	8,857 number	2012	up 82.7%	volatile
163	Eswatini	8,057 number	2013	up 55.2%	volatile
164	Guam	7,300 number	1989	up 62.2%	rising
165	Luxembourg	7,043 number	2018	up 133.9%	volatile
166	Comoros	6,499 number	2014	up 280.7%	volatile
167	Haiti	6,288 number	1986	up 118.3%	rising
168	Suriname	5,186 number	2002	up 20.1%	rising
169	Gambia	5,001 number	2012	up 226.9%	volatile
170	Djibouti	4,705 number	2011	up 848.6%	volatile
171	Bahamas	3,960 number	1995	down 0.1%	falling
172	Saint Kitts and Nevis	3,508 number	2015	up 308.4%	volatile
173	Samoa	2,530 number	2018	—	volatile
174	United States Virgin Islands	2,488 number	2007	down 14.9%	rising
175	Saint Lucia	2,370 number	2019	down 15.2%	volatile
176	Sao Tome and Principe	2,336 number	2015	up 231.8%	rising
177	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	2,180 number	2015	—	volatile
179	Micronesia (country)	1,539 number	2000	—	rising
180	Seychelles	1,229 number	2019	up 550.3%	volatile
181	Aruba	1,191 number	2016	down 43.1%	flat
182	Vanuatu	955 number	2004	up 48.5%	rising
183	Monaco	953 number	2020	—	rising
184	Cayman Islands	912 number	2008	up 188.6%	rising
185	San Marino	853 number	2019	down 8.2%	falling
186	Liechtenstein	849.5 number	2018	up 6.2%	rising
187	New Caledonia	761 number	1985	up 327.5%	volatile
188	Bermuda	712 number	2018	down 34.8%	rising
189	Tonga	668 number	2003	—	volatile
190	Andorra	633 number	2019	up 37.9%	rising
191	Dominica	484 number	1993	up 734.5%	volatile
192	British Virgin Islands	348 number	2018	down 71.3%	falling
193	French Polynesia	301 number	1992	up 713.5%	volatile

Regions and income groups

Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.

World 227.56 million number
IDA & IBRD total 176.68 million number
Low & middle income 173.88 million number
Middle income 168.34 million number
IBRD only 159.26 million number
Upper middle income 106.03 million number
Early-demographic dividend 92.02 million number
Late-demographic dividend 79.15 million number
East Asia & Pacific 74.55 million number
East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income) 66.21 million number
East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries) 65.68 million number
OECD members 64.11 million number

About this data

Indicator: Enrolment in tertiary education, all programmes, both sexes (number)
Unit: number
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 238 places, 8,058 data points, 1970–2020
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

The total number of students enrolled at public and private tertiary education institutions.