Uruguay: Lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group)

Key figures

Since 1998 it is up 16.45 percentage points from 61.43% in 1998. The World Bank has no value for 11 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

In 2023, Uruguay's lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group) fell 9.63 percentage points on 2022 (from 87.5% to 77.87%).

Across the 10 yearly changes before that (2002 to 2022), the average change was +2.46 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 7.56 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.6 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 23.14 percentage points in 2022 and the biggest yearly fall was 9.63 percentage points in 2023. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

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

How it compares

In 2023, Uruguay had the 24th highest value of the 30 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 Uruguay in the 2023 ranking

• South Africa — 21st of 30: 88.31%
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 22nd of 30: 85.24%
• Romania — 23rd of 30: 77.98%
• Eswatini — 25th of 30: 67.57%
• Afghanistan — 26th of 30: 62.05%
• Lebanon — 27th of 30: 52.92%

What this measures

Lower secondary education completion rate is measured as the gross intake ratio to the last grade of lower secondary education (general and pre-vocational). It is calculated as the number of new entrants in the last grade of lower secondary education, regardless of age, divided by the population at the entrance age for the last grade of lower secondary education.

Limitations: The data do not account for students who drop out during the final year of Lower secondary education. Therefore, this rate serves as a proxy and should be considered an upper estimate of the actual Lower secondary completion rate. There are many reasons why the primary completion rate can exceed 100 percent. The numerator may include late entrants and overage children who have repeated one or more grades of primary education as well as children who entered school early, while the denominator is the number of children at the entrance age for the last grade of primary education.

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

All 15 values

Lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group) in nearby economies

• Antigua and Barbuda — 105.95% (2022)
• Argentina — 94.99% (2023)
• Aruba — 107.15% (2022)
• Barbados — 97.34% (2024)
• Belize — 79.11% (2024)
• Bolivia — 88.51% (2024)
• British Virgin Islands — 74.81% (2024)
• Cayman Islands — 97.28% (2024)
• Chile

More education data for Uruguay

• 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)
• Primary education, pupils — 287,527 (2023)
• School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 104.53% (2023)
• School enrollment, primary, female (% gross) — 103.96% (2023)
• School enrollment, primary, male (% gross) — 105.08% (2023)
• Secondary education, pupils — 337,808 (2023)
• School enrollment, secondary (% gross) — 119.11% (2023)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Uruguay's lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group)?

77.87% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1998?

It is up 16.45 percentage points from 61.43% in 1998. The highest value was 92.34% in 2019 and the lowest 61.43% in 1998.

How does Uruguay rank?

24th highest of 30 economies with data for 2023.

Is the latest change in lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group) unusual for Uruguay?

In 2023, Uruguay's lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group) fell 9.63 percentage points on 2022 (from 87.5% to 77.87%). Across the 10 yearly changes before that (2002 to 2022), the average change was +2.46 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 7.56 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.6 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.SEC.CMPT.LO.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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