School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in China
China: School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes was 13.2 years in 2012. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in China, 1970–2012
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
China recorded 13.2 years for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in 2012. That is the highest value across all 32 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 30.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in China peaked at 13.2 years in 2012 and was at its lowest, 7.07 years, in 1970.
China ranks 108th of 186 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 32 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in China, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 7.07 years | — |
| 1973 | 7.58 years | +7.1% |
| 1974 | 7.67 years | +1.2% |
| 1975 | 7.95 years | +3.7% |
| 1976 | 8.24 years | +3.7% |
| 1977 | 8.68 years | +5.2% |
| 1978 | 8.77 years | +1.1% |
| 1979 | 8.41 years | -4.2% |
| 1980 | 7.92 years | -5.8% |
| 1981 | 7.84 years | -1.0% |
| 1984 | 7.79 years | -0.7% |
| 1985 | 8.26 years | +6.0% |
| 1986 | 8.65 years | +4.8% |
| 1987 | 8.7 years | +0.5% |
| 1988 | 8.81 years | +1.3% |
| 1989 | 8.74 years | -0.8% |
| 1990 | 8.63 years | -1.3% |
| 1991 | 8.63 years | -0.0% |
| 1992 | 8.64 years | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 8.65 years | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 8.63 years | -0.3% |
| 1995 | 8.77 years | +1.7% |
| 1996 | 9.01 years | +2.8% |
| 1997 | 9.17 years | +1.7% |
| 2001 | 10.16 years | +10.8% |
| 2006 | 11.81 years | +16.3% |
| 2007 | 12.12 years | +2.6% |
| 2008 | 12.43 years | +2.6% |
| 2009 | 12.76 years | +2.6% |
| 2010 | 12.95 years | +1.5% |
| 2011 | 13.06 years | +0.9% |
| 2012 | 13.2 years | +1.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 8.05 years | 7.07 years | 8.77 years | 8 |
| 1980s | 8.34 years | 7.79 years | 8.81 years | 8 |
| 1990s | 8.77 years | 8.63 years | 9.17 years | 8 |
| 2000s | 11.86 years | 10.16 years | 12.76 years | 5 |
| 2010s | 13.07 years | 12.95 years | 13.2 years | 3 |
Countries ranked near China
- 105 Cape Verde 13.31 years compare
- 106 Qatar 13.3 years compare
- 107 Jordan 13.27 years compare
- 109 Azerbaijan 13.12 years compare
- 110 Palestine, State of 13.06 years compare
- 111 India 13.02 years compare
More education data for China
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 6.74 million (2024)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 69.7% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 15.4% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 99.64 (2024)
- School enrollment, primary 99.6% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in China?
- School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in China was 13.2 years in 2012, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 13.2 years in 2012.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.07 years in 1970.
- How does China rank for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes?
- China ranks 108th out of 186 countries with data for 2012.
- Is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 30.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 32 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release