Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in United States
United States: Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age was 2.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in United States, 2010–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
United States recorded 2.0% for out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.9% on the previous year and up 9.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in United States peaked at 4.2% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 1.7%, in 2010.
That places United States 40th out of 48 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in United States, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 1.7% | — |
| 2015 | 1.9% | +11.1% |
| 2016 | 1.9% | -0.0% |
| 2017 | 1.8% | -5.5% |
| 2020 | 4.2% | +138.2% |
| 2021 | 2.4% | -42.4% |
| 2022 | 2.1% | -11.5% |
| 2023 | 2.1% | -4.2% |
| 2024 | 2.0% | -0.9% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 2.0% is above the median for high income countries, which is 1.8%, 1.1× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 1.8% | 1.7% | 1.9% | 4 |
| 2020s | 2.6% | 2.0% | 4.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near United States
- 37 Costa Rica 3.0% compare
- 38 Dominican Republic 2.7% compare
- 39 Kyrgyzstan 2.6% compare
- 41 Panama 1.9% compare
- 42 Russia 1.7% compare
- 43 Peru 1.3% compare
More education data for United States
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1.74 million (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 419,732 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 4.34 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 4.14 million (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 25.35 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 23.83 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.33 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0708 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in United States?
- Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age in United States was 2.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 4.2% in 2020.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.7% in 2010.
- How does United States rank for out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age?
- United States ranks 40th out of 48 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school rate for adolescents of lower secondary school age, both sexes (household survey data) (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 9 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release