School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male (years) by country
Number of years a person of school entrance age can expect to spend within the specified level of education. For a child of a certain age a, the school life expectancy is calculated as the sum of the age specific enrolment rates for the levels of education specified. The part of the enrolment that is not...
What the numbers show
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male (years) is currently reported for 193 countries. The highest value is 15.97 years in Sweden; the lowest is 2.29 years in Somalia.
The median across all reporting countries is 11.56 years, and the mean is 11.36 years.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 7.
Over the past decade 132 countries rose and 53 fell. The largest increase was in Angola (up 169.5%), and the largest decrease in Syria (down 25.7%).
School life expectancy, primary and secondary, male (years) (School): full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sweden | 15.97 years | 2018 | up 32.3% | rising |
| 2 | Ireland | 15.39 years | 2018 | up 13.4% | rising |
| 3 | Iceland | 15.13 years | 2018 | up 4.8% | rising |
| 4 | Australia | 14.9 years | 2018 | — | rising |
| 5 | Belgium | 14.85 years | 2018 | down 0.0% | rising |
| 6 | Denmark | 14.66 years | 2018 | up 12.0% | rising |
| 7 | Finland | 14.45 years | 2018 | up 17.3% | rising |
| 8 | Netherlands | 14.29 years | 2018 | up 3.1% | rising |
| 9 | United Kingdom | 14.23 years | 2018 | up 8.4% | rising |
| 10 | Norway | 14.1 years | 2018 | up 1.9% | rising |
| 11 | Slovenia | 13.92 years | 2018 | up 8.7% | rising |
| 12 | Tonga | 13.83 years | 2015 | up 7.9% | rising |
| 13 | New Zealand | 13.81 years | 2018 | down 1.9% | rising |
| 14 | Malta | 13.75 years | 2018 | up 5.7% | rising |
| 15 | Liechtenstein | 13.69 years | 2018 | up 2.7% | flat |
| 16 | Portugal | 13.65 years | 2018 | up 3.6% | rising |
| 17 | Palau | 13.63 years | 2014 | up 14.9% | rising |
| 18 | Switzerland | 13.59 years | 2018 | up 4.0% | rising |
| 19 | Costa Rica | 13.5 years | 2019 | up 15.1% | rising |
| 20 | Spain | 13.49 years | 2018 | up 5.2% | rising |
| 21 | Grenada | 13.46 years | 2018 | down 4.4% | rising |
| 22 | Luxembourg | 13.38 years | 2018 | up 4.8% | rising |
| 23 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 13.28 years | 2018 | up 1.5% | rising |
| 24 | Uruguay | 13.28 years | 2018 | up 11.1% | rising |
| 25 | Czechia | 13.27 years | 2018 | up 6.0% | rising |
| 26 | Italy | 13.26 years | 2018 | down 0.8% | rising |
| 27 | Eswatini | 13.09 years | 2016 | up 9.3% | rising |
| 28 | Nauru | 13.08 years | 2019 | up 38.3% | rising |
| 29 | Argentina | 13.03 years | 2017 | up 5.0% | rising |
| 30 | Saudi Arabia | 13.03 years | 2019 | up 4.4% | rising |
| 31 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 12.99 years | 2016 | up 6.1% | rising |
| 32 | Antigua and Barbuda | 12.98 years | 2018 | down 8.2% | rising |
| 33 | Germany | 12.98 years | 2018 | down 3.1% | flat |
| 34 | Tunisia | 12.98 years | 2016 | up 5.3% | rising |
| 35 | Togo | 12.92 years | 2017 | up 12.9% | rising |
| 36 | Thailand | 12.91 years | 2019 | up 21.2% | rising |
| 37 | Sri Lanka | 12.9 years | 2018 | up 1.2% | rising |
| 38 | Canada | 12.84 years | 2018 | up 6.1% | rising |
| 39 | Qatar | 12.84 years | 2010 | up 10.8% | rising |
| 40 | Lithuania | 12.83 years | 2018 | up 2.9% | rising |
| 41 | Oman | 12.83 years | 2019 | up 2.8% | rising |
| 42 | Algeria | 12.82 years | 2011 | up 22.2% | rising |
| 43 | Hong Kong | 12.81 years | 2019 | up 1.4% | rising |
| 44 | Samoa | 12.78 years | 2016 | up 6.7% | rising |
| 45 | United Arab Emirates | 12.77 years | 2017 | — | rising |
| 46 | Benin | 12.74 years | 2016 | up 27.7% | rising |
| 47 | Estonia | 12.63 years | 2018 | up 4.0% | rising |
| 48 | Mauritius | 12.6 years | 2019 | up 3.0% | rising |
| 49 | Peru | 12.58 years | 2019 | up 13.5% | rising |
| 50 | Israel | 12.57 years | 2018 | up 1.2% | rising |
| 51 | Poland | 12.5 years | 2018 | up 8.6% | rising |
| 52 | Latvia | 12.49 years | 2018 | up 1.1% | rising |
| 53 | France | 12.47 years | 2018 | down 1.1% | rising |
| 54 | Mexico | 12.44 years | 2018 | up 5.9% | rising |
| 55 | Fiji | 12.41 years | 2012 | up 4.2% | rising |
| 56 | Greece | 12.39 years | 2018 | up 4.6% | rising |
| 57 | Brunei | 12.36 years | 2019 | down 7.1% | rising |
| 58 | Turkey | 12.32 years | 2018 | up 13.7% | rising |
| 59 | Chile | 12.28 years | 2018 | up 2.2% | rising |
| 60 | Nepal | 12.27 years | 2019 | up 16.4% | rising |
| 61 | Georgia | 12.26 years | 2019 | up 11.3% | rising |
| 62 | Cuba | 12.23 years | 2019 | up 5.2% | rising |
| 63 | Ecuador | 12.17 years | 2018 | up 15.2% | rising |
| 64 | Montenegro | 12.17 years | 2019 | down 1.3% | flat |
| 65 | Morocco | 12.16 years | 2019 | up 15.3% | rising |
| 66 | Slovakia | 12.15 years | 2018 | up 0.1% | rising |
| 67 | Cameroon | 12.15 years | 2016 | up 42.7% | rising |
| 68 | Austria | 12.13 years | 2018 | up 0.4% | flat |
| 69 | Hungary | 12.1 years | 2018 | up 2.6% | rising |
| 70 | Libya | 12.09 years | 2006 | — | rising |
| 71 | Cyprus | 12.08 years | 2018 | down 0.1% | rising |
| 72 | Dominica | 12.06 years | 2019 | up 5.2% | rising |
| 73 | United States | 12.05 years | 2018 | up 1.4% | flat |
| 74 | Macao | 12.05 years | 2019 | up 14.7% | rising |
| 75 | Gabon | 11.99 years | 1999 | up 2.9% | rising |
| 76 | Bhutan | 11.97 years | 2018 | up 16.3% | rising |
| 77 | South Africa | 11.92 years | 2018 | down 1.3% | rising |
| 78 | Uzbekistan | 11.9 years | 2019 | up 9.0% | rising |
| 79 | East Timor | 11.89 years | 2019 | up 0.7% | rising |
| 80 | Belize | 11.87 years | 2019 | up 4.9% | rising |
| 81 | South Korea | 11.87 years | 2018 | down 0.0% | rising |
| 82 | Brazil | 11.86 years | 2011 | down 13.0% | falling |
| 83 | Egypt | 11.77 years | 2019 | up 15.0% | rising |
| 84 | Indonesia | 11.77 years | 2018 | up 9.8% | rising |
| 85 | Kazakhstan | 11.74 years | 2019 | up 4.0% | rising |
| 86 | Albania | 11.71 years | 2019 | up 11.4% | flat |
| 87 | Suriname | 11.7 years | 2015 | up 11.1% | flat |
| 88 | Afghanistan | 11.68 years | 2018 | up 10.9% | rising |
| 89 | Aruba | 11.68 years | 2012 | down 2.1% | flat |
| 90 | Iran | 11.67 years | 2017 | up 11.0% | rising |
| 91 | Croatia | 11.67 years | 2018 | up 1.0% | rising |
| 92 | Kuwait | 11.65 years | 2015 | down 5.9% | rising |
| 93 | Saint Lucia | 11.62 years | 2019 | up 1.9% | rising |
| 94 | Dominican Republic | 11.61 years | 2019 | down 1.6% | rising |
| 95 | Russia | 11.57 years | 2018 | up 13.3% | rising |
| 96 | Botswana | 11.56 years | 2008 | down 0.7% | rising |
| 97 | Azerbaijan | 11.56 years | 2019 | — | rising |
| 98 | Micronesia (country) | 11.55 years | 2005 | — | falling |
| 99 | Sao Tome and Principe | 11.54 years | 2017 | up 17.1% | rising |
| 100 | Cape Verde | 11.51 years | 2018 | down 2.6% | rising |
| 101 | Serbia | 11.51 years | 2019 | up 2.9% | flat |
| 102 | Romania | 11.5 years | 2018 | down 3.5% | rising |
| 103 | Bahrain | 11.49 years | 2019 | up 0.8% | rising |
| 104 | Bolivia | 11.44 years | 2018 | down 4.3% | rising |
| 105 | North Macedonia | 11.43 years | 2018 | up 3.1% | rising |
| 106 | Colombia | 11.42 years | 2018 | down 0.3% | rising |
| 107 | Kiribati | 11.42 years | 2008 | up 6.5% | rising |
| 108 | Mongolia | 11.41 years | 2010 | up 54.7% | rising |
| 109 | Namibia | 11.38 years | 2007 | up 3.9% | rising |
| 110 | Belarus | 11.34 years | 2018 | down 3.9% | rising |
| 111 | Trinidad and Tobago | 11.3 years | 2004 | up 6.9% | rising |
| 112 | Malawi | 11.3 years | 2019 | up 8.9% | rising |
| 113 | Lesotho | 11.28 years | 2017 | up 5.8% | rising |
| 114 | China | 11.27 years | 2010 | up 18.5% | rising |
| 115 | Malaysia | 11.25 years | 2017 | up 8.9% | rising |
| 116 | Angola | 11.22 years | 2011 | up 169.5% | rising |
| 117 | Bermuda | 11.21 years | 2015 | up 2.9% | flat |
| 118 | Zimbabwe | 11.2 years | 2013 | up 12.5% | rising |
| 119 | French Polynesia | 11.17 years | 1993 | — | flat |
| 120 | Bulgaria | 11.16 years | 2018 | down 3.6% | rising |
| 121 | Gibraltar | 11.16 years | 2019 | up 10.9% | rising |
| 122 | Barbados | 11.16 years | 2019 | up 0.2% | flat |
| 123 | Seychelles | 11.16 years | 2019 | down 3.3% | rising |
| 124 | Maldives | 11.05 years | 2019 | down 5.4% | rising |
| 125 | Philippines | 11.05 years | 2018 | up 14.4% | rising |
| 126 | British Virgin Islands | 11 years | 2018 | down 17.9% | rising |
| 127 | Iraq | 11 years | 2007 | up 31.2% | flat |
| 128 | Ghana | 10.97 years | 2019 | up 10.0% | rising |
| 129 | Vanuatu | 10.95 years | 2015 | up 2.8% | rising |
| 130 | Kyrgyzstan | 10.85 years | 2019 | up 9.6% | flat |
| 131 | Guyana | 10.82 years | 2012 | down 4.4% | rising |
| 132 | Nicaragua | 10.79 years | 2010 | up 24.2% | rising |
| 133 | Paraguay | 10.78 years | 2012 | down 4.7% | rising |
| 134 | Palestine | 10.78 years | 2019 | up 4.2% | rising |
| 135 | Solomon Islands | 10.77 years | 2012 | up 28.2% | rising |
| 136 | Rwanda | 10.76 years | 2019 | up 1.1% | rising |
| 137 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 10.74 years | 2018 | up 8.6% | falling |
| 138 | Ukraine | 10.68 years | 2014 | down 1.1% | rising |
| 139 | Uganda | 10.6 years | 2007 | up 10.9% | rising |
| 140 | Tajikistan | 10.57 years | 2013 | up 4.2% | rising |
| 141 | Cote d'Ivoire | 10.55 years | 2019 | up 17.7% | rising |
| 142 | Cambodia | 10.5 years | 2008 | up 35.9% | rising |
| 143 | San Marino | 10.49 years | 2019 | down 17.9% | rising |
| 144 | Sierra Leone | 10.44 years | 2017 | up 6.5% | rising |
| 145 | Armenia | 10.41 years | 2019 | up 0.3% | rising |
| 146 | Papua New Guinea | 10.39 years | 2016 | — | rising |
| 147 | Bangladesh | 10.33 years | 2018 | up 31.3% | rising |
| 148 | Kenya | 10.28 years | 2009 | up 29.3% | rising |
| 149 | Congo | 10.27 years | 2012 | up 8.4% | falling |
| 150 | Panama | 10.21 years | 2017 | down 3.6% | rising |
| 151 | Comoros | 10.19 years | 2018 | down 1.6% | rising |
| 152 | Venezuela | 10.17 years | 2017 | down 0.5% | rising |
| 153 | El Salvador | 10.12 years | 2018 | down 9.7% | rising |
| 154 | Mozambique | 10.07 years | 2017 | up 2.7% | rising |
| 155 | Burundi | 9.94 years | 2019 | up 0.4% | volatile |
| 156 | India | 9.93 years | 2019 | up 2.7% | rising |
| 157 | Cayman Islands | 9.92 years | 2018 | down 5.7% | falling |
| 158 | Puerto Rico | 9.91 years | 2018 | down 9.2% | falling |
| 159 | Liberia | 9.9 years | 2015 | down 9.7% | rising |
| 160 | Laos | 9.88 years | 2019 | up 5.4% | rising |
| 161 | Democratic Republic of Congo | 9.88 years | 2015 | up 9.7% | rising |
| 162 | Moldova | 9.68 years | 2019 | down 1.9% | flat |
| 163 | Myanmar | 9.65 years | 2018 | up 23.5% | rising |
| 164 | Yemen | 9.64 years | 2016 | down 2.8% | flat |
| 165 | Guinea | 9.48 years | 2014 | up 21.3% | rising |
| 166 | Tuvalu | 9.39 years | 2019 | down 12.6% | flat |
| 167 | Jamaica | 9.36 years | 2019 | down 8.2% | falling |
| 168 | Guatemala | 9.3 years | 2019 | down 7.5% | rising |
| 169 | Madagascar | 9.26 years | 2019 | down 9.0% | rising |
| 170 | Bahamas | 8.89 years | 2018 | down 22.5% | falling |
| 171 | Burkina Faso | 8.83 years | 2019 | up 34.1% | volatile |
| 172 | Jordan | 8.8 years | 2019 | down 15.4% | falling |
| 173 | Mauritania | 8.79 years | 2019 | up 16.8% | rising |
| 174 | Tanzania | 8.74 years | 2019 | down 6.1% | rising |
| 175 | Honduras | 8.62 years | 2019 | down 1.8% | rising |
| 176 | Marshall Islands | 8.6 years | 2019 | down 17.8% | falling |
| 177 | Ethiopia | 8.54 years | 2015 | up 16.3% | rising |
| 178 | Pakistan | 8.52 years | 2019 | up 21.0% | rising |
| 179 | Zambia | 8.33 years | 1988 | up 5.0% | rising |
| 180 | Central African Republic | 8.15 years | 2016 | up 9.9% | rising |
| 181 | Chad | 8.06 years | 2019 | up 0.3% | rising |
| 182 | Nigeria | 8.01 years | 2016 | down 13.4% | rising |
| 183 | Gambia | 7.84 years | 2010 | up 21.5% | rising |
| 184 | Senegal | 7.66 years | 2019 | up 2.8% | rising |
| 185 | Eritrea | 7.57 years | 2018 | down 14.6% | rising |
| 186 | Djibouti | 7.55 years | 2020 | up 33.1% | rising |
| 187 | Syria | 7.5 years | 2013 | down 25.7% | flat |
| 188 | Mali | 7.38 years | 2018 | down 4.2% | rising |
| 189 | Sudan | 7.25 years | 2017 | up 15.5% | rising |
| 190 | Guinea-Bissau | 7.03 years | 2000 | up 57.0% | rising |
| 191 | Niger | 6.76 years | 2017 | up 50.2% | volatile |
| 192 | Equatorial Guinea | 6.65 years | 2005 | down 24.2% | rising |
| 193 | Somalia | 2.29 years | 2007 | — | rising |
Regions and income groups
Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.
- European Union 13.24 years
- Euro area 13.15 years
- High income 12.61 years
- OECD members 12.54 years
- Post-demographic dividend 12.54 years
- Europe & Central Asia 12.42 years
- Central Europe and the Baltics 12.26 years
- Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income) 12.12 years
- North America 12.12 years
- Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries) 12.12 years
- Latin America & Caribbean 12.11 years
- Pacific island small states 11.8 years
- Europe & Central Asia (IDA & IBRD countries) 11.69 years
- Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) 11.64 years
- Upper middle income 11.62 years
- Late-demographic dividend 11.5 years
- Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan 11.44 years
- Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) 11.29 years
- Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income) 11.28 years
- East Asia & Pacific 11.25 years
- East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries) 11.21 years
- East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income) 11.2 years
- IBRD only 11.06 years
- Small states 10.93 years
- Other small states 10.93 years
- Middle income 10.61 years
- World 10.61 years
- Caribbean Small States 10.57 years
- Early-demographic dividend 10.46 years
- Arab World 10.41 years
- IDA & IBRD total 10.4 years
- Low & middle income 10.39 years
- Lower middle income 9.91 years
- South Asia 9.87 years
- South Asia (IDA & IBRD) 9.87 years
- IDA only 9.42 years
- Least developed countries 9.41 years
- Heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC) 9.35 years
- IDA total 9.23 years
- Low income 9.18 years
About this data
Number of years a person of school entrance age can expect to spend within the specified level of education. For a child of a certain age a, the school life expectancy is calculated as the sum of the age specific enrolment rates for the levels of education specified. The part of the enrolment that is not distributed by age is divided by the school-age population for the level of education they are enrolled in, and multiplied by the duration of that level of education. The result is then added to the sum of the age-specific enrolment rates. A relatively high SLE indicates greater probability for children to spend more years in education and higher overall retention within the education system. It must be noted that the expected number of years does not necessarily coincide with the expected number of grades of education completed, because of repetition. Since school life expectancy is an average based on participation in different levels of education, the expected number of years of schooling may be pulled down by the magnitude of children who never go to school. Those children who are in school may benefit from many more years of education than the average.