New entrants to the upper secondary level were 4,489 in the autumn of 2017 and decreased by 2.4% from the previous year. The number of new entrants who chose vocational programmes increased again after a decrease in recent years, with a larger increase of females than males. The number of new entrants with a foreign background increased by almost two percentage points from 2016.
More new entrants in vocational programmes
The number of new entrants to the upper secondary level who chose vocational programmes was 736 in the autumn of 2017, an increase of 9.4% from the previous year. The number of female new entrants to vocational programmes increased more than the number of males, or by 19.2%. Male new entrants in vocational programmes were 475 in the autumn of 2017, an increase of 4.6% from 2016. Despite a considerable increase of females among new entrants to vocational programmes, males are still 64.5% of new entrants.
The number of new entrants who selected general programmes decreased from 2016 and was 3,753 in 2017, a decrease of 4.4%. Females were a majority, 51.8%.
The number of new entrants with a foreign background increases
New entrants with a foreign background increased from 2016 and were 19.1% of all new entrants in the autumn of 2017. Those who are considered to have a foreign background are immigrants, second generation immigrants and students with one foreign parent. The number of new entrants with a foreign background increased by almost two percentage points from 2016. The increase was greatest among second generation immigrants, from 49 to 64 (30.6%), and among immigrants, from 322 to 392 (18.1%).
Nine out of ten new entrants at the upper secondary level are 16 years old
A large majority of new entrants were 16 years old, 4,013 in total or 89.4% of all new entrants to the upper secondary level. The decrease in the number of new entrants by age was greatest among 17 year olds, 12.8%, from 117 to 102. The number of new entrants who were 15 years and younger increased by almost 19% and was 70 in the autumn of 2017. Likewise, there was an increase in the number of new entrants in all age groups from the age of 25 and upwards.
Female new entrants decreased by 4% from 2016 and were 2,204 in the autumn of 2017, about 49% of all new entrants to the upper secondary level. Male new entrants decreased by 0.7% from the previous year and were 2,285 in the autumn of 2017.
About the data
Information is gathered directly from the schools and from the computer programme INNA used by schools at the upper secondary level, and refers to the number of students in the middle of October each year. New entrants are those who were studying at the upper secondary level in Iceland for the first time according to Statistics Iceland’s student data. Type of study is classified into general and vocational programmes according to the international classification of education ISCED 2011. Classification of students’ background is derived from Statistics Iceland’s population data.