Acquisition of Laureate's Australia and New Zealand Operations (Details) student in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2020 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2019 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2020 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2019 USD ($)	Aug. 11, 2020 USD ($)	Aug. 10, 2020 USD ($)	Jul. 29, 2020 industry student	Aug. 01, 2018 USD ($)
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Merger and integration costs	$ 2,920,000	$ 1,500,000	$ 7,858,000	$ 11,698,000
Revolving Credit Facility | Amended Credit Facility
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Revolving credit facility, value					$ 350,000,000	$ 250,000,000		$ 250,000,000
Laureate Education, Australia and New Zealand Operations
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Number of industries | industry							5
Merger and integration costs			$ 2,600,000
Laureate Education, Australia and New Zealand Operations | Minimum
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Number of students | student							19