Official entrance age to upper secondary education in Denmark
Denmark: Official entrance age to upper secondary education was 16 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
16
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
2nd
of 73 countries
All-time high
16
in 1981
All-time low
15
in 1970
Years of data
56
1970–2025
Official entrance age to upper secondary education in Denmark, 1970–2025
Source: UNICEF.
Analysis
The most recent figure for official entrance age to upper secondary education in Denmark is 16, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 56 years on record.
The figure is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, official entrance age to upper secondary education in Denmark peaked at 16 in 1981 and was at its lowest, 15, in 1970.
That places Denmark 2nd out of 73 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
Official entrance age to upper secondary education in Denmark, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 15 | — |
| 1971 | 15 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 15 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 15 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 15 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 15 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 15 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 15 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 15 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 15 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 15 | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 16 | +6.7% |
| 1982 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 16 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 16 | +0.0% |
Denmark compared with similar countries
- Denmark's 16 is above the median for high income countries, which is 15, 1.1× the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Denmark's 16 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 15, 1.1× the median. (52 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 15 | 15 | 15 | 10 |
| 1980s | 15.9 | 15 | 16 | 10 |
| 1990s | 16 | 16 | 16 | 10 |
| 2000s | 16 | 16 | 16 | 10 |
| 2010s | 16 | 16 | 16 | 10 |
| 2020s | 16 | 16 | 16 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Denmark
- 1 Lithuania 17 compare
- 2 Moldova 16 compare
- 2 Sweden 16 compare
- 2 Andorra 16 compare
- 2 Ireland 16 compare
- 2 Germany 16 compare
- 2 Turkmenistan 16 compare
- 2 Estonia 16 compare
- 2 Jordan 16 compare
- 2 Oman 16 compare
- 2 Finland 16 compare
- 2 Latvia 16 compare
- 2 Kyrgyzstan 16 compare
- 2 Tajikistan 16 compare
- 2 Norway 16 compare
- 2 Uzbekistan 16 compare
- 2 Iceland 16 compare
- 2 Liechtenstein 16 compare
- 2 Russia 16 compare
More education data for Denmark
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 99.21 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.11 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 50,935 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 2,888 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 94,481 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 88,072 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 522,143 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 432,238 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.8558 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is official entrance age to upper secondary education in Denmark?
- Official entrance age to upper secondary education in Denmark was 16 in 2025, according to UNICEF.
- What is the highest official entrance age to upper secondary education recorded in Denmark?
- The highest recorded value was 16 in 1981.
- What is the lowest official entrance age to upper secondary education recorded in Denmark?
- The lowest recorded value was 15 in 1970.
- How does Denmark rank for official entrance age to upper secondary education?
- Denmark ranks 2nd out of 73 countries with data for 2025.
- Is official entrance age to upper secondary education rising or falling in Denmark?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Denmark data come from?
- The figures come from UNICEF, published as part of Official entrance age to upper secondary education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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