Saudi Arabia: Tertiary education, academic staff (% female)

Key figures

What the numbers say

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 6.83 percentage points in 1987 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.15 percentage points in 1978. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.69 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 73% of the movement over 9 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 2024, Saudi Arabia had the 27th highest value of the 61 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 2024 ranking

• Estonia — 23rd of 61: 49.7%
• Malaysia — 24th of 61: 49.45%
• Honduras — 25th of 61: 48.88%
• Uzbekistan — 27th of 61: 47.84%
• Slovak Republic — 28th of 61: 47.83%
• Sweden — 29th of 61: 47.74%

What this measures

Tertiary education, academic staff (% female) is the share of female academic staff in tertiary education.

Limitations: The indicator measures the level of gender representation in the teaching profession, rather than the effectiveness and quality of teaching.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 48 values

Tertiary education, academic staff (% female) in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — 13.68% (2020)
• Algeria — 47.31% (2024)
• Bahrain — 46.89% (2024)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 50.84% (2025)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 34% (2020)
• Jordan — 33.44% (2024)
• Malta — 39.03% (2024)
• Morocco — 36.36% (2024)
• Oman — 38.92% (2024)
• Pakistan — 36.47% (2024)

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)
• Pupil-teacher ratio, tertiary — 18.97 (2018)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Saudi Arabia's tertiary education, academic staff (% female)?

48.05% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1971?

It is up 41.6 percentage points from 6.46% in 1971. The highest value was 48.05% in 2024 and the lowest 6.46% in 1971.

How does Saudi Arabia rank?

27th highest of 61 economies with data for 2024.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://databrowser.uis.unesco.org/resources, note: The data are obtained through the UIS API..

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.TER.TCHR.FE.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://databrowser.uis.unesco.org/resources, note: The data are obtained through the UIS API. 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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