School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in South Asia
South Asia: School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes was 11.08 years in 2019. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in South Asia, 1970–2019
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in years.
Analysis
South Asia recorded 11.08 years for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in 2019.
That represents a change of up 12.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in South Asia peaked at 11.63 years in 2016 and was at its lowest, 5.43 years, in 1971.
South Asia ranks 31st of 43 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 50 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in South Asia, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 5.45 years | — |
| 1971 | 5.43 years | -0.4% |
| 1972 | 5.55 years | +2.2% |
| 1973 | 5.76 years | +3.8% |
| 1974 | 5.76 years | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 5.83 years | +1.3% |
| 1976 | 5.83 years | -0.0% |
| 1977 | 5.94 years | +1.9% |
| 1978 | 5.81 years | -2.3% |
| 1979 | 5.86 years | +1.0% |
| 1980 | 5.99 years | +2.1% |
| 1981 | 6.13 years | +2.3% |
| 1982 | 6.21 years | +1.5% |
| 1983 | 6.46 years | +4.0% |
| 1984 | 6.62 years | +2.4% |
| 1985 | 6.68 years | +0.9% |
| 1986 | 6.82 years | +2.1% |
| 1987 | 6.75 years | -1.0% |
| 1988 | 6.84 years | +1.4% |
| 1989 | 6.99 years | +2.1% |
| 1990 | 7.09 years | +1.5% |
| 1991 | 7.26 years | +2.4% |
| 1992 | 7.42 years | +2.2% |
| 1993 | 7.61 years | +2.5% |
| 1994 | 7.7 years | +1.2% |
| 1995 | 7.69 years | -0.1% |
| 1996 | 7.73 years | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 7.78 years | +0.6% |
| 1998 | 7.69 years | -1.1% |
| 1999 | 7.69 years | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 7.9 years | +2.8% |
| 2001 | 7.92 years | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 8.13 years | +2.7% |
| 2003 | 8.61 years | +5.8% |
| 2004 | 8.83 years | +2.6% |
| 2005 | 9.06 years | +2.6% |
| 2006 | 9.28 years | +2.4% |
| 2007 | 9.59 years | +3.3% |
| 2008 | 9.82 years | +2.4% |
| 2009 | 9.85 years | +0.3% |
| 2010 | 10.16 years | +3.1% |
| 2011 | 10.6 years | +4.4% |
| 2012 | 10.82 years | +2.0% |
| 2013 | 10.87 years | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 11.15 years | +2.6% |
| 2015 | 11.26 years | +1.0% |
| 2016 | 11.63 years | +3.2% |
| 2017 | 11.47 years | -1.4% |
| 2018 | 11.08 years | -3.4% |
| 2019 | 11.08 years | -0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.72 years | 5.43 years | 5.94 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.55 years | 5.99 years | 6.99 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.57 years | 7.09 years | 7.78 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 8.9 years | 7.9 years | 9.85 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.01 years | 10.16 years | 11.63 years | 10 |
Countries ranked near South Asia
- 28 Macau, China 16.44 years compare
- 29 Puerto Rico 16.42 years compare
- 30 Switzerland 16.41 years compare
- 31 Bahrain 16.3 years compare
- 32 United States of America 16.28 years compare
- 33 Czechia 16.28 years compare
- 34 Latvia 16.23 years compare
More education data for South Asia
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 160.82 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 4.5 % change on previous year (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 152.88 million (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0959 units per person (2024)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 5.84 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 24.6% (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 68.1% (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in South Asia?
- School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in South Asia was 11.08 years in 2019, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in South Asia?
- The highest recorded value was 11.63 years in 2016.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in South Asia?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.43 years in 1971.
- How does South Asia rank for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes?
- South Asia ranks 31st out of 43 groups with data for 2019.
- Is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes rising or falling in South Asia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Asia data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Expected years of schooling is the number of years a child of school entrance age is expected to spend at school, or university, including years spent on repetition. It is the sum of the age-specific enrolment ratios for primary, secondary, post-secondary non-tertiary and tertiary education.