School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in United States

United States: School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female was 16.91 years in 2018. ▲ Rising

Latest (2018)
16.91 years
Change on year
down 0.1%
World rank
27th
of 175 countries
All-time high
16.92 years
in 2017
All-time low
14.47 years
in 1981
Years of data
33
1981–2018

School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in United States, 1981–2018

0510151981199920181981: 14.5 years1982: 14.8 years1983: 14.7 years1984: 14.8 years1985: 14.8 years1986: 15 years1987: 15.2 years1990: 15.8 years1991: 15.9 years1993: 16.4 years1994: 16.5 years1995: 16.5 years1996: 16.5 years1998: 16.7 years2000: 15.6 years2001: 15.9 years2002: 16 years2003: 16.2 years2004: 16.3 years2005: 16.5 years2006: 16.5 years2007: 16.5 years2008: 16.6 years2009: 16.8 years2010: 16.8 years2011: 16.9 years2012: 16.8 years2013: 16.8 years2014: 16.9 years2015: 16.9 years2016: 16.9 years2017: 16.9 years2018: 16.9 years

Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in years.

Analysis

The most recent figure for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in United States is 16.91 years, measured in 2018.

The figure is down 0.1% on the previous year and up 1.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in United States peaked at 16.92 years in 2017 and was at its lowest, 14.47 years, in 1981.

That places United States 27th out of 175 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.

School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in United States, year by year

Annual values for School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female (years) in United States, 1981 to 2018.
Year years Change
1981 14.47 years
1982 14.83 years +2.5%
1983 14.7 years -0.9%
1984 14.83 years +0.8%
1985 14.79 years -0.2%
1986 15.05 years +1.7%
1987 15.23 years +1.2%
1990 15.84 years +4.0%
1991 15.92 years +0.5%
1993 16.44 years +3.2%
1994 16.47 years +0.2%
1995 16.54 years +0.4%
1996 16.45 years -0.6%
1998 16.74 years +1.7%
2000 15.6 years -6.8%
2001 15.87 years +1.8%
2002 15.97 years +0.6%
2003 16.16 years +1.2%
2004 16.32 years +0.9%
2005 16.46 years +0.8%
2006 16.46 years +0.0%
2007 16.52 years +0.4%
2008 16.63 years +0.7%
2009 16.82 years +1.1%
2010 16.76 years -0.3%
2011 16.86 years +0.6%
2012 16.8 years -0.3%
2013 16.84 years +0.2%
2014 16.85 years +0.1%
2015 16.88 years +0.2%
2016 16.89 years +0.0%
2017 16.92 years +0.2%
2018 16.91 years -0.1%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 14.84 years 14.47 years 15.23 years 7
1990s 16.34 years 15.84 years 16.74 years 7
2000s 16.28 years 15.6 years 16.82 years 10
2010s 16.86 years 16.76 years 16.92 years 9

Countries ranked near United States

  1. 24 Lithuania 17.03 years compare
  2. 25 Bahrain 17 years compare
  3. 26 Latvia 16.96 years compare
  4. 28 Germany 16.91 years compare
  5. 29 Chile 16.83 years compare
  6. 30 Czechia 16.8 years compare

See the full ranking of 220 places →

More gender data for United States

All data for United States →

Frequently asked questions

What is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in United States?
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in United States was 16.91 years in 2018, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
What is the highest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female recorded in United States?
The highest recorded value was 16.92 years in 2017.
What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female recorded in United States?
The lowest recorded value was 14.47 years in 1981.
How does United States rank for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female?
United States ranks 27th out of 175 countries with data for 2018.
Is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female rising or falling in United States?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this United States data come from?
The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female in United States. Statizoid, drawing on Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Retrieved 29 August 2026, from https://gender.statizoid.com/stat/school-life-expectancy-primary-to-tertiary-female-years/united-states/

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About this data

Indicator
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, female (years)
Unit
years
Source
Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
220 places, 6,052 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Expected years of schooling is the number of years a child of school entrance age is expected to spend at school, or university, including years spent on repetition. It is the sum of the age-specific enrolment ratios for primary, secondary, post-secondary non-tertiary and tertiary education.