Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general in Japan

Japan: Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general was 88.6% in 2018. ▲ Rising

Latest (2018)
88.6%
Change on year
up 0.0%
World rank
135th
of 205 countries
All-time high
88.6%
in 2018
All-time low
81.3%
in 1971
Years of data
45
1971–2018

Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general in Japan, 1971–2018

0204060801971199420181971: 81.3 %1972: 81.7 %1973: 81.9 %1974: 82.4 %1975: 82.6 %1976: 83 %1977: 83.5 %1978: 84.3 %1979: 84.7 %1980: 84.9 %1981: 85.2 %1982: 85 %1983: 86.7 %1984: 87 %1985: 87 %1986: 87.1 %1987: 87.4 %1988: 87.4 %1989: 87.3 %1990: 87 %1991: 86.4 %1992: 86.4 %1994: 85.5 %1995: 85.5 %1998: 86.7 %1999: 86.9 %2000: 87 %2001: 86.9 %2002: 87 %2003: 87.1 %2004: 87.1 %2005: 87.1 %2006: 87.3 %2007: 87.6 %2008: 87.9 %2009: 88 %2010: 88.2 %2011: 88.2 %2012: 88.4 %2013: 88.4 %2014: 88.4 %2015: 88.5 %2016: 88.5 %2017: 88.5 %2018: 88.6 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

Japan recorded 88.6% for share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general in 2018. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general in Japan peaked at 88.6% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 81.3%, in 1971.

Japan ranks 135th of 205 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.

Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general in Japan, year by year

Annual values for Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general programmes (%) in Japan, 1971 to 2018.
Year % Change
1971 81.3%
1972 81.7% +0.4%
1973 81.9% +0.3%
1974 82.4% +0.5%
1975 82.6% +0.3%
1976 83.0% +0.4%
1977 83.5% +0.6%
1978 84.3% +0.9%
1979 84.7% +0.5%
1980 84.9% +0.2%
1981 85.2% +0.4%
1982 85.0% -0.3%
1983 86.7% +2.1%
1984 87.0% +0.3%
1985 87.0% -0.0%
1986 87.1% +0.2%
1987 87.4% +0.3%
1988 87.4% +0.0%
1989 87.3% -0.2%
1990 87.0% -0.3%
1991 86.4% -0.6%
1992 86.4% -0.0%
1994 85.5% -1.1%
1995 85.5% +0.0%
1998 86.7% +1.5%
1999 86.9% +0.3%
2000 87.0% +0.0%
2001 86.9% -0.1%
2002 87.0% +0.1%
2003 87.1% +0.1%
2004 87.1% +0.0%
2005 87.1% -0.0%
2006 87.3% +0.2%
2007 87.6% +0.3%
2008 87.9% +0.4%
2009 88.0% +0.2%
2010 88.2% +0.2%
2011 88.2% +0.0%
2012 88.4% +0.1%
2013 88.4% +0.0%
2014 88.4% +0.1%
2015 88.5% +0.0%
2016 88.5% +0.1%
2017 88.5% +0.0%
2018 88.6% +0.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 82.8% 81.3% 84.7% 9
1980s 86.5% 84.9% 87.4% 10
1990s 86.3% 85.5% 87.0% 7
2000s 87.3% 86.9% 88.0% 10
2010s 88.4% 88.2% 88.6% 9

Countries ranked near Japan

  1. 132 Thailand 88.8% compare
  2. 133 Monaco 88.6% compare
  3. 134 Seychelles 88.6% compare
  4. 136 Chile 88.4% compare
  5. 137 Mali 87.8% compare
  6. 138 Rwanda 87.4% compare

See the full ranking of 250 places →

More reference data data for Japan

All data for Japan →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general in Japan?
Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general in Japan was 88.6% in 2018, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general recorded in Japan?
The highest recorded value was 88.6% in 2018.
What is the lowest share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general recorded in Japan?
The lowest recorded value was 81.3% in 1971.
How does Japan rank for share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general?
Japan ranks 135th out of 205 countries with data for 2018.
Is share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general rising or falling in Japan?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Japan data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general programmes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general in Japan. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 25 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-all-students-in-secondary-education-enrolled-in-general-programmes-percent/japan/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of all students in secondary education enrolled in general programmes (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
250 places, 8,733 data points, 1970–2020
Last refreshed

Total number of students enrolled in general programmes at the secondary education level, expressed as a percentage of the total number of students enrolled in all programmes (vocational and general) at the secondary level. General education is designed to develop learners’ general knowledge, skills and competencies and literacy and numeracy skills, often to prepare students for more advanced educational programmes at the same or higher ISCED levels and to lay the foundation for lifelong learning. General educational programmes are typically school- or college-based. General education includes educational programmes that are designed to prepare students for entry into vocational education, but that do not prepare for employment in a particular occupation or trade or class of occupations or trades, nor lead directly to a labour market relevant qualification.