There were 46,328 students at levels above compulsory education in the autumn of 2020, an increase of 4,721 from the previous year or 11.3%. This is the second largest number of students measured by Statistics Iceland, but a slightly larger number of students were studying in the autumn of 2011. The number of students increased at all levels of education and in all regions, except in East Iceland. The number of students with a foreign background increased as well as the number of students with an Icelandic background.
There were 22,067 students at the tertiary level as a whole, an increase of 14.7% from the previous year, and their number has never been higher. Thereof, 656 students were studying for the doctoral degree, the highest number recorded.
A total of 22,767 students studied at the upper secondary level, an increase of 7.5% from the previous year. At the post-secondary non-tertiary level there were 1,494 students, more than ever before.
The enrolment rate of 16-year olds was unchanged between years at 95.1%, but the rate was higher for students aged 17-29 years compared with the previous year. The enrolment rate of 19-year olds has been decreasing in recent years due to changes in the requirements which shortened the time needed to complete the matriculation exam. In the autumn of 2020 this rate increased to 66.5% but was 58.0% in the autumn of 2019.
About the data
Information is gathered directly from the schools as well as 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. The enrolment rate is computed by classifying students by age and domicile each year and computing their proportion of the relevant age group.