Percentage of students advancing from one grade of schooling to the next during the reporting period.
Organizations should footnote all assumptions used, as well as any relevant details regarding the promotion rate.
This metric is intended to capture the percentage of students that have continued from one grade to the next—for example, from the third to the fourth year of secondary school. For instance, if 100 students had completed their third year of secondary school as of the end of the previous reporting period and 95 have continued to the fourth year of secondary school as of the beginning of the reporting period, the student promotion rate is 95%, calculated as 95/100 × 100.
This metric differs from Student Dropout Rate (PI9910), which captures the rate at which students drop out during the reporting period.
This metric aligns with the UNESCO Institute for Statistics Indicator “Promotion Rate by Grade (PR)” (http://uis.unesco.org/sites/default/files/documents/education-indicators-technical-guidelines-en_0.pdf). This metric can be used as an input to calculate “Transition Rate” between schooling levels (for example, from primary to secondary school)
This metric is multi-dimensional with regard to the five dimensions of impact. In some contexts, this metric can serve as an indicator of whether the outcome being sought by an investor or organization is occurring (the WHAT dimension of impact). It may also help measure the HOW MUCH Scale dimension, which helps estimate the number of the targeted stakeholders experiencing the outcome. For more on the alignment of IRIS metrics to the five dimensions of impact, see IRIS+ and the Five Dimensions of Impact (https://iris.thegiin.org/document/iris-and-the-five-dimensions/). No single metric is sufficient to understand an impact; rather, metrics are selected as a set across all dimensions of impact. When possible, the selection of metrics to measure and describe the five dimensions should be based on best practice and evidence.
June 2025 - IRIS+ v5.3b Released (current version)
No change.
December 2024 - IRIS+ v5.3a Released
No change.
June 2022 - IRIS+ v5.3 Released
Immaterial change. Minor revisions to metric name, definition, and usage guidance for clarity.
May 2021 - IRIS+ v5.2 Released
No change.
January 2020 - IRIS+ v5.1 Released
Immaterial change. Edited metric name, formula, and usage guidance to clarify and link to underlying IRIS+ metrics.
May 2019 - IRIS+ v5.0 Released
No change.
March 2016 - IRIS+ v4.0 Released
No change.
March 2014 - IRIS+ v3.0 Released
Immaterial change. Minor revision to definition language for clarity.
November 2011 - IRIS+ v2.2 Released
No change.
February 2011 - IRIS+ v2.1 Released
No change.
September 2010 - IRIS+ v2.0 Released
Material change. Student Transition Rate (PI4934) replaced Transition Rate: Primary to Secondary (ED5). Metric modified to increase generalization.
September 2009 - IRIS+ v1.0 Released
New metric. Transition Rate: Primary to Secondary (ED5) was developed via the Original IRIS Working Group.
IRIS Metrics Work Better in Sets
To use IRIS metrics—and the resulting data—to understand impact performance, IRIS metrics should be used and analyzed in generally accepted sets and according to well-defined objectives. IRIS+ gives you access to generally accepted Core Metrics Sets aligned to common Impact Themes and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).