Share of all students in upper … upper both sexes vocational in Japan
Japan: Share of all students in upper … upper both sexes vocational was 21.1% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in in Japan, 1998–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in in Japan is 21.1%, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 13 years on record.
The figure is down 1.8% on the previous year and down 8.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in in Japan peaked at 26.1% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 21.1%, in 2023.
That places Japan 85th out of 168 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 13 years of available data.
Share of all students in upper … upper both sexes vocational in Japan, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 26.1% | — |
| 1999 | 25.7% | -1.6% |
| 2013 | 23.0% | -10.4% |
| 2014 | 22.9% | -0.2% |
| 2015 | 22.7% | -1.1% |
| 2016 | 22.5% | -0.7% |
| 2017 | 22.4% | -0.8% |
| 2018 | 22.2% | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 22.1% | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 22.0% | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 21.8% | -1.0% |
| 2022 | 21.5% | -1.4% |
| 2023 | 21.1% | -1.8% |
Japan compared with similar countries
- Japan's 21.1% is below the median for high income countries, which is 33.7%, 63% of the median. (64 countries reporting)
- Japan's 21.1% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 15.8%, 1.3× the median. (24 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 25.9% | 25.7% | 26.1% | 2 |
| 2010s | 22.5% | 22.1% | 23.0% | 7 |
| 2020s | 21.6% | 21.1% | 22.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More education data for Japan
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 627,777 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (1999)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.50 million (1999)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.46 million (1999)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.61 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.25 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.01 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0502 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in in Japan?
- Share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in in Japan was 21.1% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 26.1% in 1998.
- What is the lowest share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 21.1% in 2023.
- How does Japan rank for share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in?
- Japan ranks 85th out of 168 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Japan data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Share of all students in upper secondary education enrolled in vocational programmes, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release