In 2020, there were about 1.04 million high school students in Myanmar. That year, there were approximately 2.85 thousand high schools and more than 45.2 thousand high school teachers in the country.

In 2021, medicine was the most popular higher education study major in Myanmar, with more than nine thousand students studying this subject. With approximately 1.8 thousand students, nursing was the second most preferred study major, compared to just 118 students who were enrolled in studying community health. Brief overview of education in Myanmar In 2014, all of primary school-age population of Myanmar was enrolled in some form of education. Alternatively, with approximately a quarter of the students dropping out, the enrollment share decreased for students enrolled in higher education. In April 2016, the reforms headed by the National League for Democracy demonstrated significant improvement in the allotted budget for education sector. In 2020, the Myanmar government spent over 770 U.S. dollars per tertiary student accounting for a generous share of the GDP. Spotlight on higher education With a relatively high number of Bachelor degree holders, Myanmar registered approximately 2.77 million students enrolled in higher education in 2021. The number of students graduated in the field of medicine in 2019 stood at approximately two thousand. In comparison, the number of students who graduated in the field of medical technology amounted to only 16 that year.

Myanmar MM: School Enrollment: Secondary: Female: % Net data was reported at 58.860 % in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 49.760 % for 2014. Myanmar MM: School Enrollment: Secondary: Female: % Net data is updated yearly, averaging 41.251 % from Dec 1999 (Median) to 2017, with 13 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 58.860 % in 2017 and a record low of 29.597 % in 1999. Myanmar MM: School Enrollment: Secondary: Female: % Net data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Myanmar – Table MM.World Bank.WDI: Education Statistics. Net enrollment rate is the ratio of children of official school age who are enrolled in school to the population of the corresponding official school age. Secondary education completes the provision of basic education that began at the primary level, and aims at laying the foundations for lifelong learning and human development, by offering more subject- or skill-oriented instruction using more specialized teachers.; ; UNESCO Institute for Statistics; Weighted average; Each economy is classified based on the classification of World Bank Group's fiscal year 2018 (July 1, 2017-June 30, 2018).

Myanmar’s expenditure on education in 2019 amounted to approximately 10.46 percent of total government spending. This was an increase of less than one percent from 2017. Despite Myanmar’s efforts to put more focus on to its education sector, a higher share of government spending went on defense. Despite not having a higher level of expenditure put into education, Myanmar still had a high net enrollment rate in primary schools. Efforts towards improvement As Myanmar has begun to attempt to recover from economic hardship experienced through sanctions, there has been a realization that there is a need for more qualified individuals who can stimulate economic and social development. A new wave of highly qualified individuals and experts would require an education sector which can provide the necessary training needed to advance academically. Therefore, Myanmar has increased its efforts to improve access to and the quality of basic education. The country hopes to achieve this through funding received from the International Development Association which will be targeted at the most disadvantaged areas and underachieving schools. Although a significant number of people in Myanmar have a bachelor’s degree, it is predominantly only the wealthy who are able to progress into higher education.
Problems: past and present Long periods of social and political instability brought about by civil war have had a profound impact upon the education sector in Myanmar. The education system is run by the government and there have existed such extreme differences in the quality of teaching that students have gotten to grade three level without being able to read and write. Consequently, Myanmar has had a significantly high illiteracy rate among adults. For this reason, strong competition to secure places in better schools has developed. There have been instances of corruption within the education sector, with school principals accepting bribes from parents to allow their children into certain schools. New initiatives plan to eradicate the bribery within the education system and give less-advantaged children a higher quality of education.