School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in UIS: World
UIS: World: School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes was 10.6 years in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
10.6 years
Change on year
up 0.4%
Rank
107th
of 221 groups
All-time high
10.6 years
in 2024
All-time low
7.64 years
in 1971
Years of data
55
1970–2024
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in UIS: World, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2024, school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in UIS: World stood at 10.6 years. That is the highest value across all 55 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.4% on the previous year and up 2.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in UIS: World peaked at 10.6 years in 2024 and was at its lowest, 7.64 years, in 1971.
UIS: World ranks 107th of 221 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 55 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in UIS: World, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 7.67 years | — |
| 1971 | 7.64 years | -0.4% |
| 1972 | 7.69 years | +0.7% |
| 1973 | 7.81 years | +1.6% |
| 1974 | 7.83 years | +0.3% |
| 1975 | 7.93 years | +1.3% |
| 1976 | 8.03 years | +1.2% |
| 1977 | 8.16 years | +1.6% |
| 1978 | 8.22 years | +0.7% |
| 1979 | 8.16 years | -0.7% |
| 1980 | 8.1 years | -0.8% |
| 1981 | 8.11 years | +0.1% |
| 1982 | 8.12 years | +0.1% |
| 1983 | 8.15 years | +0.5% |
| 1984 | 8.19 years | +0.4% |
| 1985 | 8.25 years | +0.8% |
| 1986 | 8.29 years | +0.4% |
| 1987 | 8.3 years | +0.1% |
| 1988 | 8.33 years | +0.4% |
| 1989 | 8.3 years | -0.4% |
| 1990 | 8.25 years | -0.6% |
| 1991 | 8.27 years | +0.3% |
| 1992 | 8.27 years | -0.0% |
| 1993 | 8.28 years | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 8.29 years | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 8.31 years | +0.3% |
| 1996 | 8.36 years | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 8.4 years | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 8.44 years | +0.4% |
| 1999 | 8.52 years | +1.0% |
| 2000 | 8.59 years | +0.8% |
| 2001 | 8.62 years | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 8.75 years | +1.5% |
| 2003 | 8.96 years | +2.4% |
| 2004 | 9.1 years | +1.6% |
| 2005 | 9.24 years | +1.5% |
| 2006 | 9.36 years | +1.3% |
| 2007 | 9.48 years | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 9.59 years | +1.2% |
| 2009 | 9.67 years | +0.8% |
| 2010 | 9.8 years | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 9.88 years | +0.9% |
| 2012 | 10.27 years | +3.9% |
| 2013 | 10.38 years | +1.1% |
| 2014 | 10.36 years | -0.2% |
| 2015 | 10.34 years | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 10.42 years | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 10.41 years | -0.2% |
| 2018 | 10.33 years | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 10.36 years | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 10.44 years | +0.8% |
| 2021 | 10.47 years | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 10.54 years | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 10.55 years | +0.1% |
| 2024 | 10.6 years | +0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 7.91 years | 7.64 years | 8.22 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 8.21 years | 8.1 years | 8.33 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 8.34 years | 8.25 years | 8.52 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 9.14 years | 8.59 years | 9.67 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.25 years | 9.8 years | 10.42 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 10.52 years | 10.44 years | 10.6 years | 5 |
Countries ranked near UIS: World
- 104 Trinidad and Tobago 11.65 years compare
- 105 United States 11.65 years compare
- 106 Qatar 11.63 years compare
- 107 Sri Lanka 11.59 years compare
- 108 New Caledonia 11.56 years compare
- 109 Gibraltar 11.55 years compare
- 110 Thailand 11.54 years compare
More education data for UIS: World
- Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general 89.8% (2024)
- Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general 88.7% (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, female 314.66 million (2024)
- Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in vocational 10.2% (2024)
- Enrolment in secondary education, male 337.02 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, both sexes 206.57 million (2024)
- Teachers in primary education, both sexes 34.10 million (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, male 404.43 million (2024)
- School age population, upper secondary education, male 213.09 million (2024)
- School age population, upper secondary education, female 199.67 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in UIS: World?
- School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes in UIS: World was 10.6 years in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes recorded in UIS: World?
- The highest recorded value was 10.6 years in 2024.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes recorded in UIS: World?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.64 years in 1971.
- How does UIS: World rank for school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes?
- UIS: World ranks 107th out of 221 groups with data for 2024.
- Is school life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes rising or falling in UIS: World?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this UIS: World data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, primary and secondary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 55 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release