Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from was 2.9% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Saudi Arabia, 2004–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Saudi Arabia is 2.9%, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 18 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 33.2% on the previous year and down 64.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Saudi Arabia peaked at 10.9% in 2017 and was at its lowest, 2.9%, in 2024.
That places Saudi Arabia 109th out of 124 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 18 years of available data.
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 7.4% | — |
| 2005 | 4.7% | -37.3% |
| 2006 | 9.0% | +93.2% |
| 2007 | 8.8% | -1.7% |
| 2008 | 9.0% | +2.3% |
| 2009 | 9.0% | -0.8% |
| 2010 | 7.2% | -19.7% |
| 2011 | 7.4% | +3.2% |
| 2012 | 7.8% | +4.1% |
| 2015 | 8.2% | +5.5% |
| 2016 | 9.0% | +9.9% |
| 2017 | 10.9% | +21.1% |
| 2018 | 9.9% | -8.6% |
| 2019 | 6.8% | -32.0% |
| 2020 | 5.4% | -19.8% |
| 2021 | 5.2% | -3.8% |
| 2022 | 4.4% | -15.8% |
| 2024 | 2.9% | -33.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 8.0% | 4.7% | 9.0% | 6 |
| 2010s | 8.4% | 6.8% | 10.9% | 8 |
| 2020s | 4.5% | 2.9% | 5.4% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More education data for Saudi Arabia
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 26,900 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 215,559 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 214,840 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.36 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.45 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.53 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0976 units per person (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Saudi Arabia?
- Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Saudi Arabia was 2.9% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 10.9% in 2017.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.9% in 2024.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 109th out of 124 countries with data for 2024.
- Is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 64.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from Social Sciences, Journalism and Information programmes, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 18 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release