Education in Norte de Santander, Colombia: official figures
The net enrolment rate from the transition year to upper secondary in Norte de Santander was 87.8% in 2024, according to the Ministry of Education (15th lowest of 33), against 92.2% in 2019 and 89.0% in 2011.
How many teenagers in Norte de Santander attend upper secondary school?
47.9% of young people of upper-secondary age (15 and 16) in Norte de Santander were enrolled at that level in 2024 (16th highest of 33); net enrolment was 73.3% in lower secondary and 65.5% in the transition year.
Source: Ministerio de Educacion Nacional (MEN) · saved copyWhat is the school dropout rate in Norte de Santander?
4.4% of pupils in Norte de Santander dropped out of school during the 2024 school year (15th highest of 33), against 4.8% in 2023. 7.4% failed their year and 8.4% were repeating a grade.
Source: Ministerio de Educacion Nacional (MEN) · saved copyHow do students in Norte de Santander do in the Saber 11 exam?
Students at schools in Norte de Santander averaged 259.7 out of 500 in the Saber 11 school-leaving exam in the 2022 calendar-A round (6th highest of 33; Colombia 250.1), against 255.1 in 2019. 16,316 students sat the exam there.
Source: Instituto Colombiano para la Evaluacion de la Educacion (ICFES) · saved copyHow good are maths results in Norte de Santander?
In the 2022 Saber 11 exam, students at schools in Norte de Santander averaged 53.5 out of 100 in mathematics (5th highest of 33; Colombia 50.6), 54.4 in critical reading (Colombia 52.8) and 50.9 in English (Colombia 49.9).
Source: Instituto Colombiano para la Evaluacion de la Educacion (ICFES) · saved copyWhat is the literacy rate in Norte de Santander?
6.1% of people in Norte de Santander lived in households with an adult aged 15 or over who could not read and write in 2025 (12th lowest of 33; Colombia 6.4%), and 45.4% 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 Norte de Santander are behind at school?
In 2025, 4.0% of people in Norte de Santander lived in households with a child aged 6 to 16 not attending school (Colombia 1.8%), and 25.6% 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 Norte de Santander compares with other departments
Net enrolment rate, transition to upper secondary (2024)
Norte de Santander ranks 19 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | Net enrolment rate, transition to upper secondary |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | Cundinamarca | 89.4% |
| 17 | Arauca | 88.8% |
| 18 | Huila | 88.0% |
| 19 | Norte de Santander | 87.8% |
| 20 | Choco | 85.7% |
| 21 | Cordoba | 85.7% |
| 22 | Cesar | 84.7% |
Net enrolment rate, upper secondary (2024)
Norte de Santander ranks 16 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | Net enrolment rate, upper secondary |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Caldas | 50.0% |
| 14 | Cordoba | 48.5% |
| 15 | Meta | 48.1% |
| 16 | Norte de Santander | 47.9% |
| 17 | Sucre | 47.7% |
| 18 | Huila | 46.5% |
| 19 | Valle del Cauca | 45.7% |
School dropout rate (2024)
Norte de Santander ranks 15 of 33, highest first.
| Rank | Region | School dropout rate |
|---|---|---|
| 12 | Guainia | 4.7% |
| 13 | Huila | 4.5% |
| 14 | Meta | 4.5% |
| 15 | Norte de Santander | 4.4% |
| 16 | Santander | 4.1% |
| 17 | Antioquia | 3.8% |
| 18 | Casanare | 3.8% |
Average Saber 11 score (0-500) (2022)
Norte de Santander ranks 6 of 33, highest first. Calendar-A round, by department of the school
| Rank | Region | Average Saber 11 score (0-500) |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Santander | 267.0 |
| 4 | Cundinamarca | 262.8 |
| 5 | Quindio | 260.8 |
| 6 | Norte de Santander | 259.7 |
| 7 | Risaralda | 255.0 |
| 8 | Huila | 254.9 |
| 9 | Casanare | 253.6 |
More on Norte de Santander: 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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