School life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)
Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries): School life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes was 2.6 years in 2019. ◆ Volatile
School life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries), 1970–2019
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries) recorded 2.6 years for school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in 2019.
That represents a change of up 34.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries) peaked at 2.61 years in 2018 and was at its lowest, 0.5064 years, in 1970.
That places Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries) 13th out of 45 groups with data for 2019, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
School life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries), year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 0.5064 years | — |
| 1971 | 0.5208 years | +2.8% |
| 1972 | 0.5444 years | +4.5% |
| 1973 | 0.5787 years | +6.3% |
| 1974 | 0.6128 years | +5.9% |
| 1975 | 0.6597 years | +7.7% |
| 1976 | 0.6789 years | +2.9% |
| 1977 | 0.6843 years | +0.8% |
| 1978 | 0.6974 years | +1.9% |
| 1979 | 0.7185 years | +3.0% |
| 1980 | 0.7411 years | +3.1% |
| 1981 | 0.7697 years | +3.8% |
| 1982 | 0.784 years | +1.9% |
| 1983 | 0.7984 years | +1.8% |
| 1984 | 0.8248 years | +3.3% |
| 1985 | 0.8551 years | +3.7% |
| 1986 | 0.8866 years | +3.7% |
| 1987 | 0.8938 years | +0.8% |
| 1988 | 0.9121 years | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 0.9148 years | +0.3% |
| 1990 | 0.911 years | -0.4% |
| 1991 | 0.9197 years | +1.0% |
| 1992 | 0.9235 years | +0.4% |
| 1993 | 0.9177 years | -0.6% |
| 1994 | 0.926 years | +0.9% |
| 1995 | 0.9451 years | +2.1% |
| 1996 | 0.9691 years | +2.5% |
| 1997 | 0.9993 years | +3.1% |
| 1998 | 1.07 years | +6.6% |
| 1999 | 1.1 years | +3.1% |
| 2000 | 1.15 years | +4.9% |
| 2001 | 1.25 years | +8.1% |
| 2002 | 1.34 years | +7.6% |
| 2003 | 1.41 years | +5.4% |
| 2004 | 1.46 years | +3.5% |
| 2005 | 1.54 years | +5.3% |
| 2006 | 1.63 years | +6.1% |
| 2007 | 1.73 years | +6.2% |
| 2008 | 1.88 years | +8.3% |
| 2009 | 1.93 years | +3.0% |
| 2010 | 2.02 years | +4.6% |
| 2011 | 2.1 years | +4.0% |
| 2012 | 2.17 years | +3.3% |
| 2013 | 2.27 years | +4.4% |
| 2014 | 2.37 years | +4.4% |
| 2015 | 2.43 years | +2.5% |
| 2016 | 2.53 years | +4.4% |
| 2017 | 2.58 years | +1.7% |
| 2018 | 2.61 years | +1.2% |
| 2019 | 2.6 years | -0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.6202 years | 0.5064 years | 0.7185 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.838 years | 0.7411 years | 0.9148 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.9675 years | 0.911 years | 1.1 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.53 years | 1.15 years | 1.93 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.37 years | 2.02 years | 2.61 years | 10 |
Countries ranked near Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)
- 10 Saint Kitts and Nevis 4.33 years compare
- 11 Finland 4.29 years compare
- 12 Netherlands 4.24 years compare
- 13 Russian Federation 4.23 years compare
- 14 New Zealand 4.19 years compare
- 15 Spain 4.17 years compare
- 16 Denmark 4.11 years compare
More education data for Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 3.22 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 62.34 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 60.53 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.1513 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 22.3% (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 67.7% (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0936 units per person (2024)
All data for Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries) →
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- School life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries) was 2.6 years in 2019, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes recorded in Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The highest recorded value was 2.61 years in 2018.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes recorded in Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5064 years in 1970.
- How does Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries) rank for school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes?
- Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries) ranks 13th out of 45 groups with data for 2019.
- Is school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes rising or falling in Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 34.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries) data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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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.