Saudi Arabia: Over-age students, primary (% of enrollment)

Key figures

Over five years it is down 6.22 percentage points from 10.62% in 2013. Since 1979 it is down 19.46 percentage points from 23.86% in 1979. The World Bank has no value for 29 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

In 2018, Saudi Arabia's over-age students, primary (% of enrollment) rose 0.47 percentage points on 2017 (from 3.93% to 4.4%).

Across the 8 yearly changes before that (2010 to 2017), the average change was −1.1 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.08 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.8 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 1.54 percentage points in 2013 and the biggest yearly fall was 3.78 percentage points in 2010. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2009 to 2018 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.68 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 52% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2018, Saudi Arabia had the 45th highest value of the 77 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Saudi Arabia in the 2018 ranking

• Bolivia — 42nd of 77: 5.38%
• Jamaica — 43rd of 77: 5.31%
• Tunisia — 44th of 77: 5.24%
• Grenada — 46th of 77: 4.12%
• Brunei Darussalam — 47th of 77: 4.08%
• Macao SAR, China — 48th of 77: 3.99%

What this measures

Over-age students are the percentage of those enrolled who are older than the official school-age range for primary education.

All 11 values

Over-age students, primary (% of enrollment) in nearby economies

• Algeria — 6.57% (2018)
• Bahrain — 2.67% (2018)
• Djibouti — 11.29% (2019)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 2.55% (2018)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 7.66% (2017)
• Israel — 2.8% (2017)
• Jordan — 0.7% (2018)
• Kuwait — 2.58% (2018)
• Lebanon — 6.73% (2018)
• Malta — 0.86% (2017)

More education data for Saudi Arabia

• Primary school starting age (years) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 12 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• School enrollment, tertiary (% gross) — 83.88% (2024)
• School enrollment, tertiary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 1.01 (2024)
• School enrollment, tertiary, female (% gross) — 84.15% (2024)
• School enrollment, tertiary, male (% gross) — 83.65% (2024)
• Tertiary education, academic staff (% female) — 48.05% (2024)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Saudi Arabia's over-age students, primary (% of enrollment)?

4.4% in 2018, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1979?

It is down 19.46 percentage points from 23.86% in 1979. The highest value was 23.86% in 1979 and the lowest 3.93% in 2017.

How does Saudi Arabia rank?

45th highest of 77 economies with data for 2018.

Is the latest change in over-age students, primary (% of enrollment) unusual for Saudi Arabia?

In 2018, Saudi Arabia's over-age students, primary (% of enrollment) rose 0.47 percentage points on 2017 (from 3.93% to 4.4%). Across the 8 yearly changes before that (2010 to 2017), the average change was −1.1 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.08 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.8 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.PRM.OENR.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://uis.unesco.org/bdds, publisher: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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