Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in New Zealand
New Zealand: Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from was 16.6% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in New Zealand, 2005–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in New Zealand stood at 16.6%.
That represents a change of down 0.6% on the previous year and up 25.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in New Zealand peaked at 16.7% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 10.0%, in 2005.
New Zealand ranks 77th of 123 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 10.0% | — |
| 2013 | 12.7% | +27.4% |
| 2014 | 13.2% | +3.9% |
| 2015 | 12.7% | -4.3% |
| 2016 | 12.0% | -5.1% |
| 2017 | 13.6% | +13.3% |
| 2018 | 14.1% | +3.8% |
| 2019 | 15.8% | +12.0% |
| 2020 | 15.9% | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 15.5% | -2.2% |
| 2022 | 15.2% | -1.9% |
| 2023 | 16.7% | +9.9% |
| 2024 | 16.6% | -0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 10.0% | 10.0% | 10.0% | 1 |
| 2010s | 13.4% | 12.0% | 15.8% | 7 |
| 2020s | 16.0% | 15.2% | 16.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
- 74 El Salvador 17.5% compare
- 75 Bahrain 17.0% compare
- 76 Ireland 17.0% compare
- 78 Brunei Darussalam 16.1% compare
- 79 Jordan 15.8% compare
- 80 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 15.4% compare
- 80 North Macedonia 15.4% compare
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 graduates from tertiary education graduating from in New Zealand?
- Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in New Zealand was 16.6% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 16.7% in 2023.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.0% in 2005.
- How does New Zealand rank for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from?
- New Zealand ranks 77th out of 123 countries with data for 2024.
- Is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is up 25.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from Engineering, Manufacturing and Construction programmes, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release