definition of terms~

Definition of Terms

Graduates are those who successfully complete an educational programme during the reference year of the data collection. One condition of a successful completion is that students should have enrolled in, and successfully completed, the final year of the corresponding educational programme, although not necessarily in the year of reference. Students who do not complete the final year of an educational programme, but later successfully complete a recognised "equivalency" examination based on knowledge learned outside of the education system, should not be counted as graduates. Successful completion is defined according to the graduation requirements established by each country: in some countries, completion occurs as a result of passing a final, curriculum-based examination or series of examinations. In other countries, completion occurs after a specific number of teaching hours has been accumulated (although completion of some or all of the course hours may also involve examinations).

The number of students enrolled refers to the count of students studying in the reference period. Each student enrolled in the education programmes covered by the corresponding category is counted once and only once. National data collection systems permitting, the statistics reflect the number of students enrolled at the beginning of the school / academic year. Preferably, the end (or near-end) of the first month of the school / academic year is chosen (special arrangements are made for part-year students who may not start studies at the beginning of the school year). Exceptions to this may be required: at the pre-primary level of education a gradual inflow may exist and, therefore, an average over several counting dates may be preferable. At the tertiary level the enrolment of students may not be stable enough at the beginning of the academic year and therefore a count at a later point may be preferable. Adult education programmes cover the learning activity of those returning to education after having left initial (or "regular") education. Only programmes (of at least one semester) that are similar to regular education (in subject content or potential qualifications) are included. In some countries, there are, in addition, adult education that are not similar to regular education; these programmes are not included.


New entrants to a level of education are students who are entering any programme leading to a recognised qualification at this level of education for the first time, irrespective of whether the students enter the programme at the beginning or at an advanced stage of the programme. Individuals who are returning to study at a level following a period of absence from studying at that same level are not considered to be new entrants. Foreign students who are enrolling for the first time in the country for which the data are reported are counted as new entrants, regardless of their previous education in other countries.