Education in Cesar, Colombia: official figures
The net enrolment rate from the transition year to upper secondary in Cesar was 84.7% in 2024, according to the Ministry of Education (12th lowest of 33), against 90.6% in 2019 and 94.6% in 2011.
How many teenagers in Cesar attend upper secondary school?
39.8% of young people of upper-secondary age (15 and 16) in Cesar were enrolled at that level in 2024 (10th lowest of 33); net enrolment was 69.2% in lower secondary and 56.8% in the transition year.
Source: Ministerio de Educacion Nacional (MEN) · saved copyWhat is the school dropout rate in Cesar?
5.0% of pupils in Cesar dropped out of school during the 2024 school year (8th highest of 33), against 4.8% in 2023. 6.9% failed their year and 9.4% were repeating a grade.
Source: Ministerio de Educacion Nacional (MEN) · saved copyHow do students in Cesar do in the Saber 11 exam?
Students at schools in Cesar averaged 242.4 out of 500 in the Saber 11 school-leaving exam in the 2022 calendar-A round (17th highest of 33; Colombia 250.1), against 238.4 in 2019. 13,575 students sat the exam there.
Source: Instituto Colombiano para la Evaluacion de la Educacion (ICFES) · saved copyHow good are maths results in Cesar?
In the 2022 Saber 11 exam, students at schools in Cesar averaged 49.0 out of 100 in mathematics (14th lowest of 33; Colombia 50.6), 51.3 in critical reading (Colombia 52.8) and 47.7 in English (Colombia 49.9).
Source: Instituto Colombiano para la Evaluacion de la Educacion (ICFES) · saved copyWhat is the literacy rate in Cesar?
11.0% of people in Cesar lived in households with an adult aged 15 or over who could not read and write in 2025 (9th highest of 33; Colombia 6.4%), and 39.9% in households whose adults averaged fewer than nine years of schooling (Colombia 36.8%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow many children in Cesar are behind at school?
In 2025, 3.4% of people in Cesar lived in households with a child aged 6 to 16 not attending school (Colombia 1.8%), and 25.4% in households with a child aged 7 to 17 behind the normal grade for their age (Colombia 19.7%).
Source: Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE) · saved copyHow Cesar compares with other departments
Net enrolment rate, transition to upper secondary (2024)
Cesar ranks 22 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | Net enrolment rate, transition to upper secondary |
|---|---|---|
| 19 | Norte de Santander | 87.8% |
| 20 | Choco | 85.7% |
| 21 | Cordoba | 85.7% |
| 22 | Cesar | 84.7% |
| 23 | Cauca | 82.5% |
| 24 | Caqueta | 82.1% |
| 25 | Putumayo | 80.0% |
Net enrolment rate, upper secondary (2024)
Cesar ranks 24 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | Net enrolment rate, upper secondary |
|---|---|---|
| 21 | Narino | 41.9% |
| 22 | Cauca | 41.6% |
| 23 | Arauca | 40.8% |
| 24 | Cesar | 39.8% |
| 25 | Putumayo | 38.1% |
| 26 | Caqueta | 33.0% |
| 27 | Guaviare | 31.9% |
School dropout rate (2024)
Cesar ranks 8 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | School dropout rate |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Vaupes | 5.3% |
| 6 | Arauca | 5.3% |
| 7 | Amazonas | 5.1% |
| 8 | Cesar | 5.0% |
| 9 | Valle del Cauca | 4.8% |
| 10 | Guaviare | 4.8% |
| 11 | Quindio | 4.8% |
Average Saber 11 score (0-500) (2022)
Cesar ranks 17 of 33, highest first. Calendar-A round, by department of the school
| Rank | Region | Average Saber 11 score (0-500) |
|---|---|---|
| 14 | Antioquia | 245.9 |
| 15 | Atlantico | 245.2 |
| 16 | Tolima | 244.6 |
| 17 | Cesar | 242.4 |
| 18 | Caqueta | 241.7 |
| 19 | Arauca | 241.5 |
| 20 | Putumayo | 239.7 |
More on Cesar: overview · economy and jobs · health · poverty and living standards · government budget · Colombia
Sources
- Instituto Colombiano para la Evaluacion de la Educacion (ICFES): Resultados unicos Saber 11: average scores and number of candidates by department of the school, rounds 2019-4 and 2022-4 (datos.gov.co API response, aggregated by the API from ICFES microdata), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 f4b8bdc7c323…)
- Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica (DANE): Pobreza multidimensional, anexo departamental 2025 (Encuesta Nacional de Calidad de Vida): incidence by department and area, household deprivations by indicator, intensity and incidence by sex, 2018-2025 (updated 14 April 2026), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 73caab08046d…)
- Ministerio de Educacion Nacional (MEN): MEN_ESTADISTICAS_EN_EDUCACION_EN_PREESCOLAR, BASICA Y MEDIA_POR_DEPARTAMENTO, 2011-2024: net and gross enrolment coverage, dropout, failure and repetition rates by department (datos.gov.co API response), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 bac11bda6cae…)
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