School age population, tertiary education, both sexes in Europe & Central Asia
Europe & Central Asia: School age population, tertiary education, both sexes was 53.14 million number in 2019. ▼ Falling
Latest (2019)
53.14 million number
Change on year
down 0.6%
Rank
28th
of 45 groups
All-time high
67.11 million number
in 1982
All-time low
53.14 million number
in 2019
Years of data
50
1970–2019
School age population, tertiary education, both sexes in Europe & Central Asia, 1970–2019
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.
Analysis
Europe & Central Asia recorded 53.14 million number for school age population, tertiary education, both sexes in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 50 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.6% on the previous year and down 18.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, tertiary education, both sexes in Europe & Central Asia peaked at 67.11 million number in 1982 and was at its lowest, 53.14 million number, in 2019.
That places Europe & Central Asia 28th out of 45 groups with data for 2019, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 50 years of available data.
School age population, tertiary education, both sexes in Europe & Central Asia, year by year
| Year | number | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 58.75 million number | — |
| 1971 | 60.02 million number | +2.2% |
| 1972 | 61.09 million number | +1.8% |
| 1973 | 62.05 million number | +1.6% |
| 1974 | 62.97 million number | +1.5% |
| 1975 | 63.82 million number | +1.4% |
| 1976 | 64.60 million number | +1.2% |
| 1977 | 65.29 million number | +1.1% |
| 1978 | 65.90 million number | +0.9% |
| 1979 | 66.41 million number | +0.8% |
| 1980 | 66.80 million number | +0.6% |
| 1981 | 67.04 million number | +0.4% |
| 1982 | 67.11 million number | +0.1% |
| 1983 | 66.93 million number | -0.3% |
| 1984 | 66.51 million number | -0.6% |
| 1985 | 65.88 million number | -0.9% |
| 1986 | 65.16 million number | -1.1% |
| 1987 | 64.54 million number | -1.0% |
| 1988 | 64.21 million number | -0.5% |
| 1989 | 64.09 million number | -0.2% |
| 1990 | 64.17 million number | +0.1% |
| 1991 | 64.35 million number | +0.3% |
| 1992 | 64.40 million number | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 64.23 million number | -0.3% |
| 1994 | 63.98 million number | -0.4% |
| 1995 | 63.65 million number | -0.5% |
| 1996 | 63.27 million number | -0.6% |
| 1997 | 63.09 million number | -0.3% |
| 1998 | 62.91 million number | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 63.09 million number | +0.3% |
| 2000 | 63.44 million number | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 63.79 million number | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 64.18 million number | +0.6% |
| 2003 | 64.54 million number | +0.6% |
| 2004 | 64.64 million number | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 64.84 million number | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 65.06 million number | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 65.25 million number | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 65.23 million number | -0.0% |
| 2009 | 64.86 million number | -0.6% |
| 2010 | 64.08 million number | -1.2% |
| 2011 | 62.90 million number | -1.8% |
| 2012 | 61.34 million number | -2.5% |
| 2013 | 59.78 million number | -2.5% |
| 2014 | 58.32 million number | -2.5% |
| 2015 | 56.91 million number | -2.4% |
| 2016 | 55.58 million number | -2.3% |
| 2017 | 54.48 million number | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 53.49 million number | -1.8% |
| 2019 | 53.14 million number | -0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 63.09 million number | 58.75 million number | 66.41 million number | 10 |
| 1980s | 65.83 million number | 64.09 million number | 67.11 million number | 10 |
| 1990s | 63.71 million number | 62.91 million number | 64.40 million number | 10 |
| 2000s | 64.58 million number | 63.44 million number | 65.25 million number | 10 |
| 2010s | 58.00 million number | 53.14 million number | 64.08 million number | 10 |
Countries ranked near Europe & Central Asia
- 25 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 4.02 million number compare
- 26 France 3.87 million number compare
- 27 Sudan 3.86 million number compare
- 28 Afghanistan 3.83 million number compare
- 29 Argentina 3.49 million number compare
- 30 Iraq 3.44 million number compare
- 31 Uganda 3.42 million number compare
More education data for Europe & Central Asia
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 52.35 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.0527 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0564 units per person (2024)
- Population ages 0-14 17.2% (2025)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 83.79 million (2024)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 3.52 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Population ages 15-64 64.3% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, tertiary education, both sexes in Europe & Central Asia?
- School age population, tertiary education, both sexes in Europe & Central Asia was 53.14 million number in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, tertiary education, both sexes recorded in Europe & Central Asia?
- The highest recorded value was 67.11 million number in 1982.
- What is the lowest school age population, tertiary education, both sexes recorded in Europe & Central Asia?
- The lowest recorded value was 53.14 million number in 2019.
- How does Europe & Central Asia rank for school age population, tertiary education, both sexes?
- Europe & Central Asia ranks 28th out of 45 groups with data for 2019.
- Is school age population, tertiary education, both sexes rising or falling in Europe & Central Asia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Europe & Central Asia data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, tertiary education, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Population of the age-group theoretically corresponding to tertiary education as indicated by theoretical entrance age and duration.