School life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes (years) (tertiary both) in Switzerland
Switzerland: School life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes (years) (tertiary both) was 2.88 years in 2018. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in Switzerland, 1971–2018
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2018, school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in Switzerland stood at 2.88 years. That is the highest value across all 47 years on record.
The figure is up 2.5% on the previous year and up 23.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in Switzerland peaked at 2.88 years in 2018 and was at its lowest, 0.5022 years, in 1971.
That places Switzerland 56th out of 183 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 47 years of available data.
School life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes (years) (tertiary both) in Switzerland, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 0.5022 years | — |
| 1972 | 0.529 years | +5.3% |
| 1973 | 0.5686 years | +7.5% |
| 1974 | 0.6215 years | +9.3% |
| 1975 | 0.6599 years | +6.2% |
| 1976 | 0.6945 years | +5.2% |
| 1977 | 0.7878 years | +13.4% |
| 1978 | 0.8206 years | +4.2% |
| 1979 | 0.8605 years | +4.9% |
| 1980 | 0.896 years | +4.1% |
| 1981 | 0.9278 years | +3.6% |
| 1982 | 0.9428 years | +1.6% |
| 1983 | 0.9422 years | -0.1% |
| 1984 | 0.9715 years | +3.1% |
| 1985 | 1.05 years | +8.6% |
| 1986 | 1.08 years | +2.6% |
| 1987 | 1.13 years | +4.8% |
| 1988 | 1.17 years | +3.1% |
| 1989 | 1.2 years | +2.6% |
| 1990 | 1.28 years | +6.7% |
| 1991 | 1.34 years | +4.9% |
| 1992 | 1.41 years | +4.8% |
| 1993 | 1.46 years | +3.9% |
| 1994 | 1.52 years | +4.2% |
| 1995 | 1.57 years | +2.9% |
| 1996 | 1.62 years | +3.4% |
| 1998 | 1.76 years | +8.9% |
| 1999 | 1.85 years | +4.8% |
| 2000 | 1.89 years | +2.1% |
| 2001 | 1.99 years | +5.3% |
| 2002 | 1.87 years | -6.0% |
| 2003 | 2.03 years | +8.5% |
| 2004 | 2.12 years | +4.7% |
| 2005 | 2.15 years | +1.3% |
| 2006 | 2.19 years | +1.9% |
| 2007 | 2.24 years | +2.4% |
| 2008 | 2.33 years | +3.8% |
| 2009 | 2.39 years | +2.7% |
| 2010 | 2.51 years | +5.1% |
| 2011 | 2.58 years | +2.5% |
| 2012 | 2.64 years | +2.5% |
| 2013 | 2.69 years | +2.0% |
| 2014 | 2.74 years | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 2.75 years | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 2.75 years | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 2.81 years | +2.2% |
| 2018 | 2.88 years | +2.5% |
Switzerland compared with similar countries
- Switzerland's 2.88 years is below the median for high income countries, which is 3.2 years, 90% of the median. (64 countries reporting)
- Switzerland's 2.88 years is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 3.15 years, 91% of the median. (49 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.6716 years | 0.5022 years | 0.8605 years | 9 |
| 1980s | 1.03 years | 0.896 years | 1.2 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.54 years | 1.28 years | 1.85 years | 9 |
| 2000s | 2.12 years | 1.87 years | 2.39 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.71 years | 2.51 years | 2.88 years | 9 |
Countries ranked near Switzerland
More education data for Switzerland
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 99.87 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.86 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 68,266 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 5,583 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 94,990 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 89,549 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 636,381 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 556,945 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.34 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in Switzerland?
- School life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes in Switzerland was 2.88 years in 2018, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes recorded in Switzerland?
- The highest recorded value was 2.88 years in 2018.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes recorded in Switzerland?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5022 years in 1971.
- How does Switzerland rank for school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes?
- Switzerland ranks 56th out of 183 countries with data for 2018.
- Is school life expectancy, tertiary, both sexes rising or falling in Switzerland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 23.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Switzerland 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.