Female majority and rising tertiary staff mark shifts in Malta’s education workforce – NSO

Nov 14, 2025

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Malta’s education sector continued to evolve during the 2023–2024 academic year, with updated figures from the National Statistics Office (NSO) showing notable changes in the composition of both teaching and non-teaching personnel. Out of 20,176 individuals employed in formal education, just over half – 10,461 – occupied teaching and academic roles, while the remaining 9,715 worked in administrative or non-teaching positions. Women represented a substantial majority of the workforce, accounting for 70% of all staff.

The number of classroom teachers and academic staff increased 1.2% over the previous year, driven primarily by a 9% rise in tertiary-level educators. As a result, staff at tertiary level now account for 27% of all teaching personnel, surpassing those in upper secondary and post-secondary non-tertiary levels (24.8%). Full-time employment remains dominant in the sector, with 79.4% of teachers working full-time.

A gender divide persisted across the system: women made up the majority of teaching staff at all levels below tertiary, but the trend reversed at university level, where 61% of academic staff were men. Foreign educators also became more prominent, registering a 14% increase compared to the previous academic year. Their presence was most evident in private institutions, where 42.2% of teaching staff were foreign nationals. In contrast, at tertiary level, three-quarters of academic staff were Maltese.

The overall pupil–teacher ratio stood at 9.1, but differences emerged across school sectors. State schools recorded the lowest ratio at 8.1 pupils per teacher, while private schools reported the highest at 11.8.

In parallel, the number of non-teaching staff declined slightly by 1.1%, totalling 9,715. This segment of the workforce was even more female-dominated, with women representing 74.9%. More than half of all non-teaching roles were filled by teacher aides — 5,028 individuals — most of whom worked in state schools and were concentrated in primary education. The number of personnel in school-level and higher management decreased by 3.6%, reaching 1,429.