Education in Magdalena, Colombia: official figures
The net enrolment rate from the transition year to upper secondary in Magdalena was 93.1% in 2024, according to the Ministry of Education (6th highest of 33), against 97.3% in 2019 and 94.3% in 2011.
How many teenagers in Magdalena attend upper secondary school?
44.1% of young people of upper-secondary age (15 and 16) in Magdalena were enrolled at that level in 2024 (14th lowest of 33); net enrolment was 73.0% in lower secondary and 60.8% in the transition year.
Source: Ministerio de Educacion Nacional (MEN) · saved copyWhat is the school dropout rate in Magdalena?
3.5% of pupils in Magdalena dropped out of school during the 2024 school year (12th lowest of 33), against 3.9% in 2023. 4.7% failed their year and 9.8% were repeating a grade.
Source: Ministerio de Educacion Nacional (MEN) · saved copyHow do students in Magdalena do in the Saber 11 exam?
Students at schools in Magdalena averaged 227.5 out of 500 in the Saber 11 school-leaving exam in the 2022 calendar-A round (7th lowest of 33; Colombia 250.1), against 221.6 in 2019. 16,865 students sat the exam there.
Source: Instituto Colombiano para la Evaluacion de la Educacion (ICFES) · saved copyHow good are maths results in Magdalena?
In the 2022 Saber 11 exam, students at schools in Magdalena averaged 45.4 out of 100 in mathematics (7th lowest of 33; Colombia 50.6), 48.6 in critical reading (Colombia 52.8) and 44.6 in English (Colombia 49.9).
Source: Instituto Colombiano para la Evaluacion de la Educacion (ICFES) · saved copyWhat is the literacy rate in Magdalena?
13.1% of people in Magdalena lived in households with an adult aged 15 or over who could not read and write in 2025 (6th highest of 33; Colombia 6.4%), and 49.4% 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 Magdalena are behind at school?
In 2025, 2.7% of people in Magdalena lived in households with a child aged 6 to 16 not attending school (Colombia 1.8%), and 31.1% 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 Magdalena compares with other departments
Net enrolment rate, transition to upper secondary (2024)
Magdalena ranks 6 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | Net enrolment rate, transition to upper secondary |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Tolima | 97.1% |
| 4 | San Andres and Providencia | 94.0% |
| 5 | Risaralda | 93.2% |
| 6 | Magdalena | 93.1% |
| 7 | Santander | 92.9% |
| 8 | Atlantico | 92.3% |
| 9 | Casanare | 91.0% |
Net enrolment rate, upper secondary (2024)
Magdalena ranks 20 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | Net enrolment rate, upper secondary |
|---|---|---|
| 17 | Sucre | 47.7% |
| 18 | Huila | 46.5% |
| 19 | Valle del Cauca | 45.7% |
| 20 | Magdalena | 44.1% |
| 21 | Narino | 41.9% |
| 22 | Cauca | 41.6% |
| 23 | Arauca | 40.8% |
School dropout rate (2024)
Magdalena ranks 22 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | School dropout rate |
|---|---|---|
| 19 | Tolima | 3.7% |
| 20 | Cordoba | 3.5% |
| 21 | Cundinamarca | 3.5% |
| 22 | Magdalena | 3.5% |
| 23 | Caldas | 3.4% |
| 24 | Bolivar | 3.4% |
| 25 | Cauca | 3.2% |
Average Saber 11 score (0-500) (2022)
Magdalena ranks 27 of 33, highest first. Calendar-A round, by department of the school
| Rank | Region | Average Saber 11 score (0-500) |
|---|---|---|
| 24 | Cauca | 231.1 |
| 25 | Bolivar | 230.0 |
| 26 | Guaviare | 228.8 |
| 27 | Magdalena | 227.5 |
| 28 | Guainia | 224.2 |
| 29 | La Guajira | 221.5 |
| 30 | Vichada | 217.9 |
More on Magdalena: 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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