Theoretical duration of upper secondary education in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Theoretical duration of upper secondary education was 4 years in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
4 years
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
6th
of 215 countries
All-time high
4 years
in 1998
All-time low
2 years
in 1970
Years of data
56
1970–2025
Theoretical duration of upper secondary education in Sri Lanka, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
Sri Lanka recorded 4 years for theoretical duration of upper secondary education in 2025. That is the highest value across all 56 years on record.
That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, theoretical duration of upper secondary education in Sri Lanka peaked at 4 years in 1998 and was at its lowest, 2 years, in 1970.
Sri Lanka ranks 6th of 215 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
Theoretical duration of upper secondary education in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 2 years | — |
| 1971 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 2 years | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 4 years | +100.0% |
| 1999 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 4 years | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2 years | 2 years | 2 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 2 years | 2 years | 2 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.4 years | 2 years | 4 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 4 years | 4 years | 4 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 4 years | 4 years | 4 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 4 years | 4 years | 4 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
- 4 Anguilla 2 years compare
- 4 Montserrat 2 years compare
- 4 Tokelau 2 years compare
- 6 United Arab Emirates 4 years compare
- 6 Austria 4 years compare
- 6 Burundi 4 years compare
- 6 Belgium 4 years compare
- 6 Bangladesh 4 years compare
- 6 Bosnia and Herzegovina 4 years compare
- 6 Bermuda 4 years compare
- 6 Bolivia, Plurinational State of 4 years compare
- 6 Switzerland 4 years compare
- 6 Chile 4 years compare
- 6 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 4 years compare
- 6 Czechia 4 years compare
- 6 Eritrea 4 years compare
- 6 Micronesia, Federated States of 4 years compare
- 6 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 4 years compare
- 6 Gibraltar 4 years compare
- 6 Croatia 4 years compare
- 6 Haiti 4 years compare
- 6 Hungary 4 years compare
- 6 India 4 years compare
- 6 Iceland 4 years compare
- 6 Kenya 4 years compare
- 6 Kiribati 4 years compare
- 6 Luxembourg 4 years compare
- 6 Marshall Islands 4 years compare
- 6 North Macedonia 4 years compare
- 6 Malta 4 years compare
- 6 Montenegro 4 years compare
- 6 Mauritius 4 years compare
- 6 Nepal 4 years compare
- 6 Pakistan 4 years compare
- 6 Palau 4 years compare
- 6 Poland 4 years compare
- 6 Romania 4 years compare
- 6 Solomon Islands 4 years compare
- 6 Sierra Leone 4 years compare
- 6 Somalia 4 years compare
- 6 Serbia 4 years compare
- 6 South Sudan 4 years compare
- 6 Slovakia 4 years compare
- 6 Slovenia 4 years compare
- 6 Seychelles 4 years compare
- 6 Tunisia 4 years compare
- 6 Türkiye 4 years compare
- 6 Zimbabwe 4 years compare
More education data for Sri Lanka
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,024 tertiary education (2024)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0494 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 73,333 (2023)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 2 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 65.8% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 21.7% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 10 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 5 years (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is theoretical duration of upper secondary education in Sri Lanka?
- Theoretical duration of upper secondary education in Sri Lanka was 4 years in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest theoretical duration of upper secondary education recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 4 years in 1998.
- What is the lowest theoretical duration of upper secondary education recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 2 years in 1970.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for theoretical duration of upper secondary education?
- Sri Lanka ranks 6th out of 215 countries with data for 2025.
- Is theoretical duration of upper secondary education rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release