I. General Overview

In 2024, there were 470,000 schools of all levels and types nationwide, with 286.465 million students enrolled in formal education programs and 18.851 million full-time teachers. The gross enrollment rate for preschool education was 92.00%, the completion rate for nine-year compulsory education was 95.90%, the gross enrollment rate for senior secondary education was 92.00%, and the gross enrollment rate for higher education was 60.80%.

II. Preschool Education

There were 253,300 kindergartens nationwide, including 221,000 inclusive kindergartens, accounting for 87.26% of all kindergartens.

There were 35.8399 million children enrolled in preschool education programs. Inclusive kindergartens served 32.8319 million children, accounting for 91.61% of all preschool enrollees.

There were 2.8319 million full-time preschool teachers, with 94.56% holding college degrees or above.

III. Compulsory Education

There were 188,400 schools providing compulsory education nationwide. Compulsory education programs enrolled 34.6539 million new students, with 159.7054 million students enrolled and 10.7389 million full-time teachers.

(1) Primary Schools

There were 136,300 regular primary schools nationwide. Additionally, there were 52,200 primary school teaching sites not counted as separate schools.

Primary schools enrolled 16.1663 million new students, with 105.8437 million students enrolled and 18.5727 million graduates.

There were 6.5901 million full-time primary school teachers, with a student-teacher ratio of 16.06:1; 99.99% of teachers met qualification requirements, and 81.35% held bachelor’s degrees or above.

Primary schools nationwide had 907.5962 million square meters of school buildings. The proportion of schools with adequate facilities was: sports fields (94.50%), sports equipment (97.47%), music equipment (97.25%), art equipment (97.21%), and math/natural science lab equipment (96.91%).

There were 2.7405 million primary school classes nationwide. Large classes with 56 or more students numbered 17,600, accounting for 0.64% of total classes; oversized classes with 66 or more students numbered 538, accounting for 0.02% of total classes.

(2) Junior Secondary Schools

There were 52,100 junior secondary schools nationwide (including 4 vocational junior secondary schools).

Junior secondary schools enrolled 18.4875 million new students, with 53.8616 million students enrolled and 16.9824 million graduates.

There were 4.1488 million full-time junior secondary school teachers, with a student-teacher ratio of 12.98:1. 99.97% of teachers met qualification requirements, and 94.19% held bachelor’s degrees or above.

Junior secondary schools nationwide had 844.9192 million square meters of school buildings. The proportion of schools with adequate facilities was: sports fields (95.84%), sports equipment (98.12%), music equipment (97.90%), art equipment (97.89%), and science lab equipment (97.54%).

There were 1.1634 million junior secondary school classes nationwide. Large classes with 56 or more students numbered 10,459, accounting for 0.90% of total classes. Among them, oversized classes with 66 or more students numbered 374, accounting for 0.03% of total classes.

(3) Children of Migrant Workers

Among compulsory education students, 13.0883 million were children of migrant workers, including 9.0381 million in primary schools and 4.0502 million in junior secondary schools.

IV. Special Education

There were 2,396 special education schools nationwide.

Various forms of special education enrolled 158,200 new students, with 915,900 students enrolled. Among them, 345,400 students were enrolled in special education schools, accounting for 37.71% of all special education students.

There were 81,300 full-time special education teachers nationwide.

V. Senior Secondary Education

(1) Regular Senior Secondary Schools

There were 15,800 regular senior secondary schools nationwide.

Regular senior secondary schools enrolled 10.362 million new students, with 29.2228 million students enrolled and 8.9099 million graduates.

There were 2.3018 million full-time regular senior secondary school teachers, with a student-teacher ratio of 12.70:1 and 99.37% meeting qualification requirements.

Regular senior secondary schools nationwide had 741.3979 million square meters of school buildings. The proportion of schools with adequate facilities was: sports fields (94.92%), sports equipment (96.95%), music equipment (96.47%), art equipment (96.59%), and science lab equipment (96.76%).

(2) Secondary Vocational Education

There were 6,862 secondary vocational schools nationwide.

Secondary vocational education enrolled 4.1833 million new students, with 12.2933 million students enrolled and 4.1555 million graduates.

There were 729,400 full-time secondary vocational education teachers, with a student-teacher ratio of 16.85:1; 96.98% of teachers held bachelor’s degrees or above; “dual-qualified” full-time teachers accounted for 57.20% of professional (skills) course teachers.

VI. Higher Education

There were 3,119 institutions of higher education nationwide. Among them were 1,257 regular undergraduate institutions (including 154 independent colleges), 51 vocational undergraduate institutions, 1,562 higher vocational (specialized) institutions, and 249 adult higher education institutions. Additionally, there were 233 research institutions training graduate students.

The total enrollment in various forms of higher education was 48.46 million. The average institutional size was 17,428 students for regular undergraduate institutions, 18,362 for vocational undergraduate institutions, and 10,275 for higher vocational (specialized) institutions.

Regular undergraduate institutions enrolled 4.8997 million new students, plus 874,000 students transferring from specialized programs. Vocational undergraduate institutions enrolled 109,600 new students, plus 44,100 students transferring from specialized programs. Higher vocational (specialized) institutions enrolled 5.6794 million new students (excluding 602,200 students transferring from five-year programs to specialized programs).

Regular and vocational undergraduate and specialized programs had a total of 38.9126 million students enrolled. Among them were 20.8591 million regular undergraduate students, 406,800 vocational undergraduate students, and 17.6466 million higher vocational (specialized) students.

Regular and vocational undergraduate and specialized programs produced a total of 10.5938 million graduates. Among them were 5.1196 million regular undergraduate graduates, 70,000 vocational undergraduate graduates, and 5.4043 million higher vocational (specialized) graduates.

Graduate programs enrolled 1.3568 million new students nationwide. Among them were 171,100 doctoral students and 1.1857 million master’s students. There were 4.0954 million graduate students enrolled, including 676,300 doctoral students and 3.4192 million master’s students. Graduate programs produced 1.0836 million graduates, including 97,200 doctoral graduates and 986,400 master’s graduates.

Adult undergraduate and specialized programs enrolled 3.6191 million new students, with 9.426 million students enrolled and 4.1621 million graduates. Online undergraduate and specialized programs enrolled 1.5 million new students, with 6.0027 million students enrolled and 2.6487 million graduates. The national higher education self-study examination had 5.3848 million registrants for academic credentials, with 443,500 obtaining graduation certificates.

There were 2.1635 million full-time teachers in higher education nationwide, including 1.3876 million in regular undergraduate institutions, 45,300 in vocational undergraduate institutions, 717,000 in higher vocational (specialized) institutions, and 13,500 in adult higher education institutions. The student-teacher ratio was 17.14:1 for regular undergraduate institutions, 16.94:1 for vocational undergraduate institutions, and 18.49:1 for higher vocational (specialized) institutions.

Regular and vocational higher education institutions had 1.2508952 billion square meters of school building floor space. The per-student land area was 55.68 square meters, per-student school building area was 28.90 square meters, and per-student teaching and research equipment value was 19,872.14 yuan.

VII. Private Education

There were 152,800 private schools of all levels and types nationwide, accounting for 32.52% of all schools. Private schools had 46.2159 million students enrolled, accounting for 16.13% of all students enrolled. Specifically:

There were 135,500 private kindergartens, accounting for 53.48% of all kindergartens; they served 15.08 million children, accounting for 42.08% of all preschool enrollees.

There were 9,576 private schools providing compulsory education, accounting for 5.08% of all compulsory education schools; they had 11.0595 million students enrolled (including 5.1486 million students funded by government purchase of places), accounting for 3.70% of all compulsory education students (excluding government-funded students).

There were 4,819 private regular senior secondary schools, accounting for 30.59% of all regular senior secondary schools; they had 5.8849 million students enrolled, accounting for 20.14% of all regular senior secondary school students.

There were 2,100 private secondary vocational schools, accounting for 30.60% of all secondary vocational schools; they had 2.4418 million students enrolled, accounting for 19.86% of all secondary vocational education students.

There were 803 private higher education institutions, accounting for 25.75% of all higher education institutions. Among them were 388 regular undergraduate institutions, 23 vocational undergraduate institutions, 390 higher vocational (specialized) institutions, and 2 adult higher education institutions. Private regular and vocational undergraduate and specialized programs had 10.5224 million students enrolled, accounting for 27.04% of all regular and vocational undergraduate and specialized students.

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[1] All statistical data exclude Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Macao Special Administrative Region, and Taiwan region. Some data may not sum up to totals due to rounding.

[2] Schools of all levels and types refer to schools established with approval from people’s governments at or above the county level and their education administrative departments according to state regulations, as well as schools established with approval from other relevant administrative departments of people’s governments at or above the county level and filed with education administrative departments. Military academies and technical schools managed by human resources and social security departments are not included.

[3] The gross enrollment rate for preschool education refers to the percentage of children enrolled in preschool programs (regardless of age) relative to the population aged 3-5.

[4] The completion rate for nine-year compulsory education refers to the percentage of students in junior secondary school graduation classes relative to the number of students who entered Grade 1 of primary school in the same cohort.

[5] The gross enrollment rate for senior secondary education refers to the percentage of students enrolled in senior secondary education (regardless of age) relative to the population aged 15-17.

[6] Inclusive kindergartens include public kindergartens and inclusive private kindergartens.

[7] Preschool enrollees include children in independent kindergartens and attached kindergarten classes.

[8] Full-time preschool teachers refer to teachers who provide preschool education in independent kindergartens and attached kindergarten classes in other schools.

[9] Compulsory education schools include regular primary schools, junior secondary schools, vocational junior secondary schools, and nine-year integrated schools.

[10] Compulsory education enrollment and enrollment numbers include regular primary schools, primary school teaching sites, junior secondary schools, vocational junior secondary schools, nine-year integrated schools, twelve-year integrated schools (primary and junior secondary sections), complete secondary schools (junior secondary section), and attached primary and junior secondary classes in other schools.

[11] Primary school numbers include only regular primary schools; student numbers include regular primary schools, primary school teaching sites, nine-year integrated schools (primary section), twelve-year integrated schools (primary section), and attached primary classes in other schools; school building and related data include regular primary schools and primary school teaching sites.

[12] Full-time primary school teachers refer to teachers who provide primary education in regular primary schools, primary school teaching sites, nine-year integrated schools (primary section), twelve-year integrated schools (primary section), and attached primary classes in other schools. Teachers in other levels of education attached to these schools are not included.

[13] The qualification rate for full-time teachers refers to the percentage of teachers who meet the minimum academic requirements for a particular level of education relative to the total number of teachers at that level. According to the Teachers Law of the People’s Republic of China, to obtain primary school teacher qualifications, one must have graduated from a secondary normal school or above.

[14] Schools with adequate facilities are those that meet relevant standards for sports field areas, sports equipment, music equipment, art equipment, math/natural science lab equipment, and science lab equipment as specified in the Notice on Issuing the Trial Basic Standards for National School Sports and Health Conditions by the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, and Ministry of Finance (Jiaoti Yi [2008] No. 5) and relevant equipment standards set by provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government. This includes primary schools, junior secondary schools, and regular senior secondary schools.

[15] Junior secondary school numbers and school building data include regular junior secondary schools, nine-year integrated schools, and vocational junior secondary schools; student numbers include junior secondary schools, vocational junior secondary schools, nine-year integrated schools (junior secondary section), twelve-year integrated schools (junior secondary section), complete secondary schools (junior secondary section), and attached junior secondary classes in other schools.

[16] Full-time junior secondary school teachers refer to teachers who provide junior secondary education in junior secondary schools, vocational junior secondary schools, nine-year integrated schools (junior secondary section), twelve-year integrated schools (junior secondary section), complete secondary schools (junior secondary section), and attached junior secondary classes in other schools. Teachers in other levels of education attached to these schools are not included.

[17] Children of migrant workers refer to school-age children and adolescents whose household registration is in rural areas of other provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities) or other counties (districts) of the same province, who have moved to urban areas or towns where their parents work and live together, and who receive compulsory education in the destination area.

[18] Various forms of special education include special education schools, special education classes attached to other schools, inclusive education in regular schools, and home-based education.

[19] Full-time special education teachers include teachers who provide special education in special education schools and special education classes attached to other schools. Teachers in other regular education classes attached to special education schools are not included.

[20] Regular senior secondary school numbers and school building data include senior secondary schools, complete secondary schools, and twelve-year integrated schools.

[21] Full-time regular senior secondary school teachers refer to teachers who provide regular senior secondary education in senior secondary schools, complete secondary schools (senior secondary section), twelve-year integrated schools (senior secondary section), and attached senior secondary classes in other schools. Teachers in other levels of education attached to these schools are not included.

[22] Secondary vocational education school numbers and school building data include regular specialized secondary schools, vocational senior secondary schools, and adult specialized secondary schools. Technical schools managed by human resources and social security departments are not included.

[23] Secondary vocational education enrollment, enrollment, and graduation data include regular specialized secondary schools, vocational senior secondary schools, adult specialized secondary schools, and attached secondary vocational classes in other schools. Technical school students managed by human resources and social security departments are not included.

[24] Full-time secondary vocational education teachers refer to teachers who provide secondary vocational education in regular specialized secondary schools, adult specialized secondary schools, vocational senior secondary schools, and attached secondary vocational classes in other schools. Teachers in other levels of education attached to these schools are not included.

[25] The total scale of higher education enrollment includes graduate students, regular undergraduates, vocational undergraduates and specialized students, adult undergraduates and specialized students, online undergraduates and specialized students, and self-study examination undergraduates and specialized students.

[26] The average institutional size for higher education institutions includes only regular undergraduate, vocational undergraduate, and higher vocational (specialized) students, excluding adult, online, and graduate students.

[27] Full-time higher education teachers refer to teachers who provide higher education in regular undergraduate institutions, vocational undergraduate institutions, higher vocational (specialized) institutions, and adult higher education institutions. Teachers in other levels of education attached to these institutions are not included.

[28] The student-teacher ratio for higher education institutions refers to the ratio of converted enrollment to full-time teachers. Students and teachers in other levels of education attached to higher education institutions are not included.

[29] School building floor space, land area, and teaching and research equipment value include both institutional property and independently used non-institutional property.