Teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes (number) in United States
United States: Teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes (number) was 1.58 million in 2017. ▲ Rising
Teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes in United States, 1971–2017
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
In 2017, teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes in United States stood at 1.58 million. That is the highest value across all 22 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.0% over five years.
Over the whole period, teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes in United States peaked at 1.58 million in 2017 and was at its lowest, 574,000, in 1971.
United States ranks 3rd of 185 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes (number) in United States, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 574,000 | — |
| 1972 | 596,000 | +3.8% |
| 1973 | 603,000 | +1.2% |
| 1974 | 620,000 | +2.8% |
| 1975 | 633,000 | +2.1% |
| 1976 | 670,000 | +5.8% |
| 1977 | 687,000 | +2.5% |
| 1984 | 702,000 | +2.2% |
| 1985 | 700,000 | -0.3% |
| 1986 | 694,000 | -0.9% |
| 1987 | 701,000 | +1.0% |
| 1988 | 793,000 | +13.1% |
| 1990 | 824,000 | +3.9% |
| 1991 | 833,844 | +1.2% |
| 1992 | 826,000 | -0.9% |
| 1993 | 833,278 | +0.9% |
| 1994 | 915,474 | +9.9% |
| 1995 | 905,849 | -1.1% |
| 1996 | 915,321 | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 1.58 million | +72.7% |
| 2015 | 1.58 million | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 1.58 million | +0.0% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 1.58 million is above the median for high income countries, which is 12,609, 125.4× the median. (71 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes (number) in United States changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | +72.7% | 915,321 | 1.58 million |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 626,143 | 574,000 | 687,000 | 7 |
| 1980s | 718,000 | 694,000 | 793,000 | 5 |
| 1990s | 864,824 | 824,000 | 915,474 | 7 |
| 2010s | 1.58 million | 1.58 million | 1.58 million | 3 |
Countries ranked near United States
More education data for United States
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1.74 million (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 419,732 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 4.34 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 4.14 million (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 25.35 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 23.83 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.33 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0708 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes in United States?
- Teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes in United States was 1.58 million in 2017, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 1.58 million in 2017.
- What is the lowest teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 574,000 in 1971.
- How does United States rank for teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes?
- United States ranks 3rd out of 185 countries with data for 2017.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Teachers in tertiary education programmes, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release