Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in New Zealand
New Zealand: Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from was 24.1% 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 24.1%. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
The figure is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 23.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in New Zealand peaked at 24.1% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 17.7%, in 2005.
That places New Zealand 24th out of 122 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
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 | 17.7% | — |
| 2013 | 19.6% | +10.7% |
| 2014 | 19.5% | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 20.5% | +5.2% |
| 2016 | 20.3% | -0.9% |
| 2017 | 20.3% | -0.2% |
| 2018 | 19.2% | -5.2% |
| 2019 | 20.8% | +8.1% |
| 2020 | 21.1% | +1.4% |
| 2021 | 21.5% | +1.9% |
| 2022 | 23.9% | +11.2% |
| 2023 | 23.9% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 24.1% | +1.0% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 24.1% is above the median for high income countries, which is 18.2%, 1.3× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- New Zealand's 24.1% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 11.4%, 2.1× the median. (15 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 17.7% | 17.7% | 17.7% | 1 |
| 2010s | 20.0% | 19.2% | 20.8% | 7 |
| 2020s | 22.9% | 21.1% | 24.1% | 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 graduates from tertiary education graduating from in New Zealand?
- Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in New Zealand was 24.1% 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 24.1% in 2024.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.7% in 2005.
- How does New Zealand rank for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from?
- New Zealand ranks 24th out of 122 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 23.7%. 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 Health and Welfare programmes, female (%). 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