Consolidated Balance Sheets - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents (includes VIE amounts of $141,549 and $169,074, see Note 2)	$ 856,306	$ 464,965
Restricted cash and investments	195,838	189,319
Receivables:
Accounts and notes receivable	752,848	494,646
Other receivables	22,612	23,758
Related party receivables	5,559	6,931
Allowance for doubtful accounts	(189,879)	(190,499)
Receivables, net	591,140	334,836
Income tax receivable	29,231	29,447
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	104,639	97,234
Total current assets (includes VIE amounts of $443,237 and $322,210, see Note 2)	1,777,154	1,115,801
Notes receivable, net	63,105	61,157
Property and equipment:
Land	410,661	396,821
Buildings	1,270,691	1,219,783
Furniture, equipment and software	1,203,822	1,160,350
Leasehold improvements	419,325	399,555
Construction in-progress	88,857	103,205
Accumulated depreciation and amortization	(1,197,632)	(1,128,081)
Property and equipment, net	2,195,724	2,151,633
Land use rights, net	45,382	45,275
Goodwill	2,012,964	1,934,464
Other intangible assets:
Tradenames	1,328,526	1,307,633
Other intangible assets, net	45,840	46,700
Deferred costs, net	60,355	57,748
Deferred income taxes	157,820	142,130
Derivative instruments	21,069	4,464
Other assets	202,652	195,465
Total assets (includes VIE amounts of $1,433,048 and $1,309,113, see Note 2)	7,910,591	7,062,470
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable	92,366	86,699
Accrued expenses	339,117	368,973
Accrued compensation and benefits	231,505	239,495
Deferred revenue and student deposits	735,826	362,891
Current portion of long-term debt	177,883	178,989
Current portion of due to shareholders of acquired companies	136,766	118,679
Income taxes payable	31,544	30,371
Derivative instruments	2,626	5,218
Other current liabilities	43,889	48,917
Total current liabilities (includes VIE amounts of $439,001 and $320,922, see Note 2)	1,791,522	1,440,232
Long-term debt, less current portion	3,629,815	3,629,375
Due to shareholders of acquired companies, less current portion	83,983	92,269
Deferred compensation	14,263	14,128
Income taxes payable	106,742	135,140
Deferred income taxes	454,841	452,084
Derivative instruments	7,797	7,750
Other long-term liabilities	275,438	270,267
Total liabilities (includes VIE amounts of $550,340 and $424,297, see Note 2)	6,364,401	6,041,245
Stockholders' equity:
Preferred stock, par value $0.001 per share – 49,488 shares authorized, no shares issued and outstanding as of March 31, 2017 and December 31, 2016	0	0
Common stock		534
Additional paid-in capital	3,428,638	2,721,432
Accumulated deficit	(1,160,508)	(1,037,701)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(946,399)	(1,052,055)
Total Laureate Education, Inc. stockholders' equity	1,322,405	632,210
Noncontrolling interests	34,641	32,182
Total stockholders' equity	1,357,046	664,392
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity	7,910,591	7,062,470
Series A Convertible Redeemable Preferred Stock
Current liabilities:
Total redeemable noncontrolling interests and equity	170,096	332,957
Puttable Arrangements - Common and Preferred Stock
Current liabilities:
Total redeemable noncontrolling interests and equity	19,048	$ 23,876
Class A Common Stock
Stockholders' equity:
Common stock	141
Class B Common Stock
Stockholders' equity:
Common stock	$ 533