Completion rate up

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The number of pupils completing upper secondary school and qualifying for university or obtaining vocational competence within five years has increased to 73 per cent over the past two years, up from a previously stable level around 70 per cent.

Almost 65 000 pupils started their upper secondary education for the first time in the autumn of 2011, and these are included in the 2016 statistics on completion in upper secondary education. Seventy-three per cent of these pupils completed their upper secondary education and qualified for university or obtained vocational competence within five years. In recent years, the five-year completion rate had been around 70 per cent, until it increased to 72.6 per cent in the 2015 statistics for the cohort starting their upper secondary education in 2010. The figures for 2016 show a continued increase.

Figure 1

Figure 1. Completion rates of pupils in upper secondary education, 2011-2016. Click on image for larger version.

Since 2010, various national programmes have been put in place to improve upper secondary completion, notably "Ny GIV" from 2010 to 2013, followed by "Program for bedre gjennomføring i videregående opplæring". but this article does not draw causal conclusions about the effects of such programmes.

The gap between the northern county of Finnmark and the rest of the country is narrowing

In the period covering the cohorts starting their upper secondary education from 2006 to 2011, completion rates have improved in all counties, but Finnmark has seen a particularly sharp increase, from around 50 per cent for the 2006 cohort to more than 64 per cent for the 2011 cohort.

Figure 2

Figure 2. The gap between Finnmark and the rest of the country is narrowing

The increase in Finnmark between the 2010 and 2011 cohorts alone has been more than 9 percentage points. Overall, the completion rate in Finnmark is still well below the national average, but less so for pupils enrolled in general programmes.

Figure 3. Pupils who started in 2011, and the proportion who have completed 2016. By education programmes and gender.

Completed within standard lenght of study Completed within five years but beyond standard lenght of study Completed basic competence Still in upper secondary education after five years Enrolled in final year, but failed exams Quit before or during final year of study
General Both sexes 75.7 10.2 1.2 2.2 6.4 4.3
General Males 71.2 10.7 1.6 2.8 8.6 5.0
General Females 79.5 9.8 0.9 1.6 4.5 3.7
Vocational Both sexes 39.9 19.5 3.1 9.3 6.2 22.1
Vocational Males 33.3 22.6 3.6 10.3 6.0 24.2
Vocational Females 48.7 15.1 2.4 8.0 6.6 19.1

Figure 4. General studies. Pupils who started in 2011, and the proportion who have completed 2016.

Completed within standard lenght of study Completed within five years but beyond standard lenght of study Completed basic competence Still in upper secondary education after five years Enrolled in final year, but failed exams Quit before or during final year of study
Specialisation in general studies 75.6 10.3 1.3 2.1 6.4 4.2
Sports and physical studies 76.1 10.4 0.2 2.5 7.0 3.8
Music, dance and drama 77.2 8.6 1.4 2.2 5.3 5.3

Figure 5. Vocational studies. Pupils who started in 2011, and the proportion who have completed 2016.

Completed within standard lenght of study Completed within five years but beyond standard lenght of study Completed basic competence Still in upper secondary education after five years Enrolled in final year, but failed exams Quit before or during final year of study
Media and communication 70.2 10.7 1.0 2.8 7.9 7.5
Healthcare, childhood and youth development 47.3 15.6 3.1 8.2 7.2 18.6
Agriculture, fishing and forestry 47.5 10.4 5.9 7.7 7.1 21.5
Design, arts and crafts 34.1 17.7 3.1 10.4 7.9 26.9
Technical and industrial production 37.9 16.8 3.1 11.0 3.8 27.5
Service and transport 38.1 16.3 3.8 9.1 7.5 25.3
Building and construction 31.7 22.3 3.7 10.5 6.1 25.7
Restaurant and food 31.1 13.9 8.6 13.1 4.5 28.7
Electricity and electronics 18.9 41.2 0.5 11.9 5.3 22.3

Figure 6. Pupils who started in 2011, and the proportion who have completed 2016. By school points

Completed within standard lenght of study Completed within five years but beyond standard lenght of study Completed basic competence Still in upper secondary education after five years Enrolled in final year, but failed exams Quit before or during final year of study
10-25 point 8.9 10.7 7.4 15.2 6.2 51.7
25-29 point 19.2 16.4 3.6 14.2 10.0 36.6
30-34 point 34.3 21.6 1.3 10.7 11.8 20.3
35-39 point 53.5 21.4 0.2 6.1 9.1 9.7
40-44 point 71.8 15.3 0.1 2.6 5.5 4.7
45-49 point 85.1 9.3 0.0 1.2 2.3 2.1
50-54 point 91.3 6.3 0.0 0.4 0.9 1.1
55 point or more 94.4 4.3 0.0 0.3 0.2 0.8

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