Pre-collegiate medium of instruction in schools is predominantly Kannada, with English and Kannada in the non Government run schools. Other mediums of instruction co-exist along with these two. The medium of instruction in educational institutions after matriculation in colleges is English. Recently, a committee of experts constituted by the Tulu Sahitya Academy suggested the inclusion of Tulu using Kannada script as a medium of instruction in education.

Schools and colleges in Mangalore either are government-run or run by private trusts and individuals. The schools are affiliated either with the Karnataka State Board, Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE), or the Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE) boards. After completing ten years of schooling in secondary education, the students mostly enroll at Higher Secondary School specializing in one of the three streams – Arts, Commerce or Science. Since the 1980s, there have been a large number of professional institutions established in a variety of fields including engineering, medicine, dentistry, Business management and hotel management. These institutions attract students from all over the country due to the quality of their programs.

On 10 September 1980, the Mangalore University was established. It caters to the higher educational needs of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Kodagu districts. Although Mangalore University is one of the youngest universities in the country, it has within its ambit some of the oldest and prestigious institutions of higher learning.