Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in New Zealand
New Zealand: Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions was 40.0% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in New Zealand, 2013–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 40.0% for percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in 2024.
That represents a change of up 0.9% on the previous year and down 4.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in New Zealand peaked at 41.9% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 39.2%, in 2022.
New Zealand ranks 115th of 149 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 12 years of available data.
Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 41.7% | — |
| 2014 | 41.8% | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 41.9% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 41.8% | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 41.7% | -0.2% |
| 2018 | 41.1% | -1.3% |
| 2019 | 41.1% | -0.2% |
| 2020 | 40.6% | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 39.6% | -2.5% |
| 2022 | 39.2% | -1.1% |
| 2023 | 39.7% | +1.3% |
| 2024 | 40.0% | +0.9% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 40.0% is below the median for high income countries, which is 43.0%, 93% of the median. (61 countries reporting)
- New Zealand's 40.0% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 43.2%, 93% of the median. (19 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 41.6% | 41.1% | 41.9% | 7 |
| 2020s | 39.8% | 39.2% | 40.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More education data for New Zealand
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 36,426 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 12,020 (1992)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 56,552 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 53,804 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 562,417 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 383,018 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.15 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0724 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in New Zealand?
- Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions in New Zealand was 40.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 41.9% in 2015.
- What is the lowest percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 39.2% in 2022.
- How does New Zealand rank for percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions?
- New Zealand ranks 115th out of 149 countries with data for 2024.
- Is percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Percentage of enrolment in tertiary education in public institutions, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release