Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America
United States of America: Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from was 12.0% in 2016. ▼ Falling
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America, 1999–2016
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America is 12.0%, measured in 2016. That is the lowest value across all 16 years on record.
The figure is down 0.9% on the previous year and down 13.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America peaked at 14.7% in 1999 and was at its lowest, 12.0%, in 2016.
United States of America ranks 15th of 97 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 16 years of available data.
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 14.7% | — |
| 2000 | 14.6% | -1.2% |
| 2001 | 14.6% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 14.6% | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 14.0% | -4.5% |
| 2006 | 13.9% | -0.5% |
| 2007 | 13.8% | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 13.8% | +0.3% |
| 2009 | 13.6% | -1.3% |
| 2010 | 13.5% | -1.1% |
| 2011 | 13.2% | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 13.1% | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 12.2% | -6.6% |
| 2014 | 12.3% | +0.5% |
| 2015 | 12.1% | -1.3% |
| 2016 | 12.0% | -0.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 14.7% | 14.7% | 14.7% | 1 |
| 2000s | 14.1% | 13.6% | 14.6% | 8 |
| 2010s | 12.6% | 12.0% | 13.5% | 7 |
Countries ranked near United States of America
More education data for United States of America
- 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 percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America?
- Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America was 12.0% in 2016, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in United States of America?
- The highest recorded value was 14.7% in 1999.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in United States of America?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.0% in 2016.
- How does United States of America rank for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from?
- United States of America ranks 15th out of 97 countries with data for 2016.
- Is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from rising or falling in United States of America?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United States of America 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.
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About this data
Share of all tertiary graduates who completed Social Sciences, Journalism and Information programmes in the reference year.