← Education Knowledge

School Life Expectancy

Expected total years of schooling — the number of years a child entering the education system can expect to receive, including both formal education and tertiary (UNESCO). This is distinct from mandatory schooling years and captures the full education pipeline. High SLE (18–21 years): Australia (21), New Zealand (20.5), UK nations (17–18), Belgium and Finland (19–20), Iceland (20), Ireland and Denmark (19–20), Norway (18.5), Spain (18), Turkey (18.5), Ireland (20). Long schooling reflects both compulsory education well into the teens and widely accessible, affordable third-level education. Low SLE: Niger (7), South Sudan (7), Chad (7.5), Central African Republic (7), Somalia (7), Mali (7.5), Burkina Faso (9). Many of these countries have compulsory education in law but chronic absenteeism, early school leaving for work or marriage, and inaccessible secondary schools, particularly in rural areas, dramatically reduce effective time in education. Capped at 20 years for scoring.

#↑ Country↕ Raw Value↕ Score↕
1 Australia21 years 21 years 100
1 New Zealand20.5 years 20.5 years 100
1 Ireland20 years 20 years 100
1 Belgium20 years 20 years 100
1 Iceland20 years 20 years 100
6 Finland19.5 years 19.5 years 97
6 Sweden19.5 years 19.5 years 97
6 Netherlands19.5 years 19.5 years 97
9 Denmark19 years 19 years 94
10 Norway18.5 years 18.5 years 92
10 Turkey18.5 years 18.5 years 92
12 Scotland18 years 18 years 89
12 Spain18 years 18 years 89
12 Portugal18 years 18 years 89
15 England17.5 years 17.5 years 87
15 Wales17.5 years 17.5 years 87
15 Northern Ireland17.5 years 17.5 years 87
15 Poland17.5 years 17.5 years 87
15 Korea Republic17.5 years 17.5 years 87
15 Slovenia17.5 years 17.5 years 87
15 Chinese Taipei17.5 years 17.5 years 87
15 Greece17.5 years 17.5 years 87
23 Estonia17 years 17 years 84
23 Lithuania17 years 17 years 84
23 Malta17 years 17 years 84
23 Germany17 years 17 years 84
23 Czech Republic17 years 17 years 84
23 Uruguay17 years 17 years 84
23 Singapore17 years 17 years 84
23 Hong Kong17 years 17 years 84
23 Argentina17 years 17 years 84
23 Italy17 years 17 years 84
23 Chile17 years 17 years 84
34 Latvia16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Belarus16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 United States16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Luxembourg16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Canada16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Faroe Islands16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Monaco16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Liechtenstein16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 France16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Andorra16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 San Marino16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Austria16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Hungary16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Switzerland16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Cuba16.5 years 16.5 years 82
34 Israel16.5 years 16.5 years 82
50 Brazil16 years 16 years 79
50 Macau16 years 16 years 79
50 Russia16 years 16 years 79
50 Slovakia16 years 16 years 79
50 Mongolia16 years 16 years 79
50 Cyprus16 years 16 years 79
50 Croatia16 years 16 years 79
57 Curacao15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Ukraine15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Kazakhstan15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Barbados15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Bulgaria15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Réunion15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Tahiti15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Palau15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Romania15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Serbia15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 U.S. Virgin Islands15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Montenegro15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Puerto Rico15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Georgia15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 New Caledonia15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Costa Rica15.5 years 15.5 years 77
57 Japan15.5 years 15.5 years 77
74 Bermuda15 years 15 years 75
74 Kuwait15 years 15 years 75
74 Mauritius15 years 15 years 75
74 Aruba15 years 15 years 75
74 Brunei15 years 15 years 75
74 Thailand15 years 15 years 75
74 Tunisia15 years 15 years 75
74 Saudi Arabia15 years 15 years 75
74 Gibraltar15 years 15 years 75
74 Cayman Islands15 years 15 years 75
74 Venezuela15 years 15 years 75
74 Trinidad and Tobago15 years 15 years 75
74 Anguilla15 years 15 years 75
74 Bosnia and Herzegovina15 years 15 years 75
74 British Virgin Islands15 years 15 years 75
74 Albania15 years 15 years 75
74 Peru15 years 15 years 75
74 Iran15 years 15 years 75
74 Guam15 years 15 years 75
74 Martinique15 years 15 years 75
74 Guadeloupe15 years 15 years 75
74 Ecuador15 years 15 years 75
96 Kosovo14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Seychelles14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Saint Pierre and Miquelon14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 United Arab Emirates14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Turks and Caicos Islands14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Moldova14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Mexico14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 North Macedonia14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Cook Islands14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Sint Maarten14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Saint-Martin14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Grenada14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Niue14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Colombia14.5 years 14.5 years 72
96 Northern Mariana Islands14.5 years 14.5 years 72
111 Maldives14 years 14 years 70
111 French Guiana14 years 14 years 70
111 Egypt14 years 14 years 70
111 Bahrain14 years 14 years 70
111 Sri Lanka14 years 14 years 70
111 Bahamas14 years 14 years 70
111 Korea DPR14 years 14 years 70
111 Oman14 years 14 years 70
111 Uzbekistan14 years 14 years 70
111 China14 years 14 years 70
111 Jordan14 years 14 years 70
111 Morocco14 years 14 years 70
111 Algeria14 years 14 years 70
111 Bolivia14 years 14 years 70
111 American Samoa14 years 14 years 70
111 Azerbaijan14 years 14 years 70
111 Antigua and Barbuda14 years 14 years 70
111 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines14 years 14 years 70
111 Palestine14 years 14 years 70
111 Lebanon14 years 14 years 70
111 Saint Lucia14 years 14 years 70
111 Dominican Republic14 years 14 years 70
111 Fiji14 years 14 years 70
111 Montserrat14 years 14 years 70
111 Saint Kitts and Nevis14 years 14 years 70
111 Kyrgyzstan14 years 14 years 70
111 Tonga14 years 14 years 70
111 Dominica14 years 14 years 70
139 Qatar13.5 years 13.5 years 67
139 Libya13.5 years 13.5 years 67
139 Malaysia13.5 years 13.5 years 67
139 Turkmenistan13.5 years 13.5 years 67
139 Panama13.5 years 13.5 years 67
139 Samoa13.5 years 13.5 years 67
139 Armenia13.5 years 13.5 years 67
139 Indonesia13.5 years 13.5 years 67
147 Botswana13 years 13 years 65
147 Suriname13 years 13 years 65
147 Paraguay13 years 13 years 65
147 South Africa13 years 13 years 65
147 Marshall Islands13 years 13 years 65
147 Cape Verde13 years 13 years 65
147 Vietnam13 years 13 years 65
147 Jamaica13 years 13 years 65
147 El Salvador13 years 13 years 65
147 Philippines13 years 13 years 65
147 Bhutan13 years 13 years 65
147 Nepal13 years 13 years 65
159 Ghana12.5 years 12.5 years 62
159 Namibia12.5 years 12.5 years 62
159 Gabon12.5 years 12.5 years 62
159 Guyana12.5 years 12.5 years 62
159 Tuvalu12.5 years 12.5 years 62
159 India12.5 years 12.5 years 62
159 Belize12.5 years 12.5 years 62
159 Honduras12.5 years 12.5 years 62
159 Micronesia12.5 years 12.5 years 62
159 Vanuatu12.5 years 12.5 years 62
169 Syria12 years 12 years 60
169 Ivory Coast12 years 12 years 60
169 Togo12 years 12 years 60
169 Congo12 years 12 years 60
169 Swaziland12 years 12 years 60
169 Zimbabwe12 years 12 years 60
169 Cameroon12 years 12 years 60
169 Nauru12 years 12 years 60
169 Iraq12 years 12 years 60
169 Kiribati12 years 12 years 60
169 São Tomé and Príncipe12 years 12 years 60
169 Wallis and Futuna12 years 12 years 60
169 Tajikistan12 years 12 years 60
169 Timor-Leste12 years 12 years 60
169 Guatemala12 years 12 years 60
169 Nicaragua12 years 12 years 60
185 Bangladesh11.5 years 11.5 years 57
185 Kenya11.5 years 11.5 years 57
185 Solomon Islands11.5 years 11.5 years 57
188 Angola11 years 11 years 55
188 Benin11 years 11 years 55
188 Cambodia11 years 11 years 55
188 Equatorial Guinea11 years 11 years 55
188 Lesotho11 years 11 years 55
188 Laos11 years 11 years 55
188 Zambia11 years 11 years 55
188 Zanzibar11 years 11 years 55
188 Uganda11 years 11 years 55
188 Burundi11 years 11 years 55
188 Rwanda11 years 11 years 55
188 Malawi11 years 11 years 55
188 Comoros11 years 11 years 55
188 Myanmar11 years 11 years 55
188 Mayotte11 years 11 years 55
203 Gambia10 years 10 years 50
203 Madagascar10 years 10 years 50
203 Senegal10 years 10 years 50
203 Nigeria10 years 10 years 50
203 Liberia10 years 10 years 50
203 Western Sahara10 years 10 years 50
203 Sierra Leone10 years 10 years 50
203 Congo DR10 years 10 years 50
203 Tanzania10 years 10 years 50
203 Mozambique10 years 10 years 50
203 Afghanistan10 years 10 years 50
203 Haiti10 years 10 years 50
203 Papua New Guinea10 years 10 years 50
216 Guinea-Bissau9.5 years 9.5 years 48
216 Djibouti9.5 years 9.5 years 48
218 Yemen9 years 9 years 45
218 Burkina Faso9 years 9 years 45
218 Mauritania9 years 9 years 45
218 Guinea9 years 9 years 45
218 Sudan9 years 9 years 45
218 Ethiopia9 years 9 years 45
218 Pakistan9 years 9 years 45
225 Eritrea8 years 8 years 40
226 Mali7.5 years 7.5 years 38
226 Chad7.5 years 7.5 years 38
228 Niger7 years 7 years 35
228 Central African Republic7 years 7 years 35
228 South Sudan7 years 7 years 35
228 Somalia7 years 7 years 35