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More pupils complete upper secondary education
The share of pupils starting an upper secondary education for the first time in 2008 who achieved a university admission certification or professional competence within 5 years increased by 2 percentage points compared with 2007. More women than men completed their upper secondary education, and there were disparities among the education programmes.
| 2008-2013 | Change in percentage points | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Started a basic course | Share of pupils who have completed upper secondary education within five years | 2007-2012 - 2008-2013 | 1994-1999 - 2008-2013 | |
| Total | 63 256 | 71 | 1.3 | 2.1 |
| Males | 32 653 | 66 | 1.8 | 5.1 |
| Females | 30 603 | 76 | 0.9 | -0.8 |
| General studies | 32 154 | 83 | 0.6 | 1.2 |
| Males | 14 652 | 79 | 0.8 | -0.3 |
| Females | 17 502 | 87 | 0.4 | 2.4 |
| Vocational studies | 31 102 | 57 | 2.1 | 6.5 |
| Males | 18 001 | 56 | 2.4 | 13.8 |
| Females | 13 101 | 60 | 1.5 | -3.0 |
About 63 250 pupils started an upper secondary education in 2008 for the first time. About 71 per cent of these pupils completed upper secondary school in five years. The corresponding figure for pupils starting in 2007 was 69 per cent. About 68 per cent of the pupils who started an upper secondary education in 1994; the first class registered, achieved a university admission certification or professional competence within five years.
Higher share of women than men completed
About 3 out of 4 women and 2 out of 3 men who started an upper secondary education in 2008 completed within five years. This is an increase for both genders compared with those who started in 2007. The figure below shows the development for throughput total and by gender for the period 1994-2008. As shown, throughput in upper secondary education has remained relatively stable for the last decades.
Among the 29 per cent of pupils who did not complete within the period 2008-2013, 16 per cent dropped out before the final year, and the share was the same for both genders. About 6 per cent of the pupils were still in upper secondary education after 5 years; a higher share for men than for women. About 7 per cent of the pupils did not achieve a university admission certification or professional competence within a five-year period; also a higher share for men than for women.
Differences in education programmes
Eighty-three per cent of pupils starting general studies completed within 5 years. The corresponding percentage for vocational studies was 57 per cent.
Social background is an important factor
Parents’ level of education has a large impact on the pupils’ likelihood of achieving a certificate. Eighty-eight per cent of pupils complete within 5 years when the parents have a long tertiary education. The corresponding figure was 46 per cent when the parents’ highest education level is lower secondary school.
High points from lower secondary school are important
In the group of pupils with good marks, i.e. 55 school points or more, 99 per cent of pupils completed upper secondary education within five years. On the other hand, only 13 per cent of pupils with less than 25 points completed.
Additional information
Statistics follow an intake of pupils through a five-year period in upper secondary education.