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| 2021 Tables and Figures | All Years of Tables and Figures | Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest |
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| Table 603.20. | Percentage of the population 25 to 64 years old who attained any postsecondary degree, by age group and country: Selected years, 2000 through 2020 |
| [Standard errors appear in parentheses] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | 2000 | 2005 | 2010 | 2015 | 2019 | 2020 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total, 25 to 64 years old | 25 to 34 years old | Total, 25 to 64 years old | 25 to 34 years old | Total, 25 to 64 years old |
25 to 34 years old | Total, 25 to 64 years old |
25 to 34 years old | Total, 25 to 64 years old |
25 to 34 years old | Total, 25 to 64 years old |
25 to 34 years old | 35 to 44 years old | 45 to 54 years old | 55 to 64 years old | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| OECD average1 | 22.1 | 26.1 | 26.3 | 32.2 | 30.2 | (0.12) | 37.4 | (0.24) | 34.0 | (0.05) | 41.3 | (0.11) | 37.9 | (0.06) | 44.8 | (0.12) | 39.0 | (0.05) | 45.6 | (0.10) | 44.8 | (0.09) | 36.3 | (0.09) | 29.1 | (0.08) | |||||||||||
| Australia | 27.5 | 31.4 | 31.7 | 38.1 | 37.6 | (0.45) | 44.4 | (0.89) | 42.9 | (0.30) | 48.5 | (0.60) | 47.1 | (0.31) | 52.5 | (0.61) | 49.3 | (0.32) | 54.6 | (0.64) | 58.0 | (0.61) | 45.7 | (0.63) | 36.3 | (0.62) | |||||||||||
| Austria2 | --- | --- | 24.6 | 30.6 | 27.7 | (0.14) | 33.9 | (0.33) | 30.6 | (0.15) | 38.6 | (0.35) | 33.8 | (0.15) | 41.6 | (0.35) | 34.2 | (0.15) | 41.4 | (0.34) | 39.5 | (0.32) | 31.4 | (0.28) | 25.4 | (0.26) | |||||||||||
| Belgium | 27.1 | 36.0 | 31.0 | 40.6 | 35.0 | (0.62) | 43.8 | (1.32) | 36.9 | (0.21) | 43.1 | (0.45) | 40.7 | (0.17) | 47.3 | (0.38) | 42.4 | (0.18) | 48.5 | (0.39) | 48.6 | (0.36) | 40.8 | (0.34) | 32.2 | (0.31) | |||||||||||
| Canada2,3 | 40.1 | 48.4 | 46.0 | 53.7 | 50.3 | (0.22) | 56.2 | (0.43) | 55.2 | (0.20) | 59.2 | (0.37) | 59.4 | (0.24) | 63.0 | (0.42) | 60.0 | (0.24) | 64.4 | (0.42) | 65.3 | (0.43) | 60.5 | (0.40) | 50.0 | (0.41) | |||||||||||
| Chile | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 22.5 | (0.11) | 29.9 | (0.24) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | |||||||||||
Colombia |
--- | --- | --- | --- | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 21.6 | (0.07) | 27.4 | (0.13) | 23.8 | (0.07) | 29.9 | (0.13) | 24.6 | (0.08) | 30.0 | (0.15) | 27.9 | (0.16) | 19.8 | (0.15) | 16.1 | (0.14) | |||||||||||
| Costa Rica2 | 16.4 | 17.5 | 20.8 | 24.1 | 21.0 | (0.37) | 26.1 | (0.70) | 23.1 | (0.37) | 28.3 | (0.70) | 25.1 | (0.38) | 31.3 | (0.75) | 25.1 | (0.41) | 32.5 | (0.83) | 25.9 | (0.81) | 19.5 | (0.76) | 20.9 | (0.83) | |||||||||||
| Czech Republic | 11.0 | 11.2 | 13.1 | 14.2 | 16.8 | 4 | (0.48) | 22.6 | 4 | (1.02) | 22.2 | (0.12) | 31.0 | (0.31) | 24.2 | (0.13) | 32.6 | (0.33) | 24.9 | (0.14) | 33.0 | (0.34) | 28.9 | (0.29) | 19.4 | (0.24) | 17.7 | (0.23) | |||||||||
| Denmark2 | 25.8 | 29.3 | 33.5 | 39.8 | 33.0 | (0.20) | 37.6 | (0.53) | 36.6 | (0.21) | 43.0 | (0.48) | 40.4 | (0.22) | 47.1 | (0.50) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | |||||||||||
| Estonia2 | 28.7 | 28.7 | 33.0 | 32.9 | 35.4 | (0.46) | 38.0 | (1.03) | 38.0 | (0.42) | 40.5 | (0.89) | 41.4 | (0.39) | 42.8 | (0.87) | 42.2 | (0.38) | 43.1 | (0.85) | 44.6 | (0.76) | 41.7 | (0.73) | 39.2 | (0.75) | |||||||||||
Finland2 |
32.6 | 38.7 | 34.6 | 37.5 | 38.1 | 4 | (0.90) | 39.2 | 4 | (1.87) | 42.7 | (0.30) | 40.5 | (0.68) | 45.9 | (0.20) | 41.8 | (0.43) | 47.9 | (0.21) | 44.7 | (0.45) | 53.0 | (0.42) | 51.1 | (0.42) | 42.9 | (0.38) | |||||||||
| France2 | 21.6 | 31.4 | 25.4 | 39.8 | 29.0 | 4 | (0.25) | 42.9 | 4 | (0.56) | 34.1 | (0.09) | 44.7 | (0.22) | 37.9 | (0.10) | 48.1 | (0.23) | 39.7 | (0.11) | 49.4 | (0.27) | 46.7 | (0.24) | 37.5 | (0.21) | 26.4 | (0.19) | |||||||||
| Germany | 23.5 | 22.3 | 24.6 | 22.5 | 26.6 | 4 | (0.21) | 26.1 | 4 | (0.45) | 27.6 | (0.07) | 29.6 | (0.16) | 29.9 | (0.07) | 33.3 | (0.16) | 31.3 | (0.08) | 34.9 | (0.18) | 34.6 | (0.18) | 29.0 | (0.15) | 27.6 | (0.14) | |||||||||
| Greece | 17.7 | 23.9 | 21.5 | 25.7 | 24.7 | (0.11) | 31.2 | (0.24) | 29.1 | (0.13) | 40.1 | (0.32) | 31.9 | (0.14) | 42.4 | (0.38) | 32.7 | (0.15) | 43.7 | (0.42) | 35.6 | (0.32) | 29.8 | (0.26) | 24.0 | (0.24) | |||||||||||
| Hungary2 | 14.0 | 14.7 | 17.1 | 19.6 | 20.1 | 4 | (0.53) | 26.0 | 4 | (1.15) | 24.2 | (0.12) | 32.1 | (0.29) | 26.0 | (0.14) | 30.6 | (0.33) | 27.2 | (0.14) | 30.7 | (0.33) | 33.2 | (0.30) | 23.8 | (0.26) | 20.4 | (0.24) | |||||||||
Iceland2 |
--- | --- | 29.5 | 34.5 | 31.3 | (0.49) | 34.0 | (0.98) | 37.0 | (0.53) | 37.7 | (1.07) | 40.9 | (0.53) | 42.2 | (1.13) | 40.6 | (0.52) | 38.3 | (1.04) | 47.4 | (1.04) | 44.9 | (1.05) | 31.3 | (0.96) | |||||||||||
| Ireland | 21.6 | 29.8 | 29.1 | 40.7 | 37.6 | 4 | (0.97) | 48.3 | 4 | (1.79) | 42.8 | (0.16) | 52.0 | (0.34) | 47.3 | (0.19) | 55.4 | (0.44) | 49.9 | (0.20) | 58.4 | (0.50) | 56.5 | (0.39) | 48.4 | (0.38) | 33.4 | (0.37) | |||||||||
| Israel | --- | --- | 43.0 | 42.9 | 45.6 | 4 | (0.85) | 44.2 | 4 | (1.50) | 48.8 | 4 | (0.82) | 45.9 | 4 | (1.50) | 50.2 | (0.11) | 47.0 | (0.19) | 50.1 | (0.11) | 47.3 | (0.19) | 55.8 | (0.20) | 50.3 | (0.23) | 46.1 | (0.25) | |||||||
| Italy | 9.4 | 10.4 | 12.2 | 16.1 | 14.8 | 4 | (0.20) | 20.7 | 4 | (0.47) | 17.5 | (0.07) | 25.1 | (0.19) | 19.6 | (0.07) | 27.7 | (0.20) | 20.1 | (0.08) | 28.9 | (0.22) | 24.6 | (0.18) | 16.9 | (0.13) | 13.1 | (0.12) | |||||||||
| Japan5 | 33.6 | 47.8 | 39.9 | 53.2 | 44.8 | 4 | (0.19) | 56.7 | 4 | (0.39) | 49.5 | 4 | (0.19) | 59.6 | 4 | (0.41) | 52.7 | 4 | (0.20) | 61.5 | 4 | (0.42) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | |||||
Korea, Republic of |
23.8 | 36.8 | 31.6 | 50.9 | 39.0 | 4 | (0.28) | 61.4 | 4 | (0.56) | 45.4 | 4 | (0.28) | 68.9 | 4 | (0.55) | 50.0 | 4 | (0.28) | 69.8 | 4 | (0.59) | 50.7 | 4 | (0.28) | 69.8 | 4 | (0.56) | 66.1 | 4 | (0.54) | 45.6 | 4 | (0.54) | 25.1 | 4 | (0.49) |
| Latvia2 | 18.2 | 17.3 | 20.3 | 21.7 | 26.9 | (0.32) | 34.7 | (0.74) | 31.6 | (0.32) | 39.9 | (0.76) | 35.7 | (0.34) | 43.8 | (0.80) | 37.8 | (0.34) | 44.2 | (0.81) | 42.3 | (0.74) | 36.2 | (0.66) | 29.3 | (0.58) | |||||||||||
| Lithuania | 41.8 | 39.7 | 26.5 | 36.9 | 32.4 | (0.25) | 46.3 | (0.63) | 38.7 | (0.27) | 54.8 | (0.71) | 43.1 | (0.27) | 55.2 | (0.68) | 44.1 | (0.29) | 56.2 | (0.71) | 55.0 | (0.63) | 36.7 | (0.53) | 31.3 | (0.47) | |||||||||||
| Luxembourg | 18.3 | 22.9 | 26.5 | 37.0 | 35.5 | 4 | (2.82) | 44.2 | 4 | (5.81) | 39.8 | (0.37) | 49.9 | (0.82) | 51.6 | (0.69) | 55.0 | (1.34) | 51.3 | (0.67) | 58.2 | (1.34) | 61.6 | (1.27) | 45.8 | (1.33) | 33.9 | (1.30) | |||||||||
| Mexico2 | 14.6 | 17.5 | 12.7 | 14.9 | 14.7 | (0.08) | 17.7 | (0.16) | 16.3 | (0.08) | 20.8 | (0.17) | 18.3 | (0.09) | 23.6 | (0.18) | 19.4 | (0.09) | 25.3 | (0.19) | 19.5 | (0.18) | 15.8 | (0.17) | 15.1 | (0.20) | |||||||||||
Netherlands |
23.4 | 26.6 | 30.1 | 35.4 | 32.4 | 4 | (0.49) | 40.8 | 4 | (1.10) | 35.3 | 4 | (0.50) | 45.1 | 4 | (1.09) | 40.4 | (0.10) | 49.1 | (0.22) | 42.6 | (0.10) | 52.3 | (0.25) | 48.6 | (0.23) | 38.9 | (0.19) | 32.2 | (0.17) | |||||||
| New Zealand | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 34.0 | 4 | (0.98) | 39.1 | 4 | (1.99) | 39.1 | (0.35) | 43.8 | (0.70) | 40.1 | (0.35) | 43.9 | (0.70) | 45.7 | (0.71) | 38.3 | (0.68) | 31.5 | (0.67) | |||||||||
| Norway2 | --- | --- | 32.7 | 40.9 | 37.3 | 4 | (0.95) | 47.3 | 4 | (2.00) | 42.7 | (0.21) | 48.1 | (0.45) | 44.1 | (0.21) | 48.7 | (0.43) | 45.3 | (0.21) | 50.8 | (0.42) | 50.9 | (0.42) | 43.8 | (0.40) | 34.5 | (0.40) | |||||||||
| Poland | 11.4 | 14.2 | 16.9 | 25.5 | 22.5 | 4 | (0.28) | 37.1 | 4 | (0.61) | 27.7 | 4 | (0.30) | 43.2 | 4 | (0.64) | 32.0 | (0.13) | 43.5 | (0.31) | 32.9 | (0.13) | 42.4 | (0.30) | 43.6 | (0.26) | 26.3 | (0.24) | 16.9 | (0.18) | |||||||
| Portugal2 | 8.8 | 12.9 | 12.8 | 19.1 | 15.4 | 4 | (0.47) | 24.8 | 4 | (1.13) | 22.9 | (0.14) | 33.1 | (0.39) | 26.3 | (0.16) | 37.4 | (0.46) | 28.2 | (0.18) | 41.9 | (0.55) | 33.2 | (0.40) | 24.0 | (0.31) | 16.9 | (0.27) | |||||||||
Slovak Republic |
10.4 | 11.2 | 14.0 | 16.3 | 17.3 | 4 | (0.68) | 24.0 | 4 | (1.42) | 21.1 | (0.36) | 31.3 | (0.88) | 25.8 | (0.40) | 39.2 | (1.04) | 26.8 | (0.42) | 39.0 | (1.07) | 28.9 | (0.89) | 20.4 | (0.75) | 17.4 | (0.63) | |||||||||
| Slovenia | 15.7 | 19.3 | 20.2 | 24.7 | 23.7 | 4 | (1.24) | 31.3 | 4 | (2.65) | 30.2 | (0.25) | 40.8 | (0.57) | 33.3 | 4 | (1.39) | 44.1 | 4 | (3.13) | 35.9 | (0.26) | 45.4 | (0.63) | 44.0 | (0.57) | 32.1 | (0.48) | 24.0 | (0.43) | |||||||
| Spain2 | 22.7 | 34.0 | 28.5 | 40.7 | 31.0 | (0.08) | 40.3 | (0.17) | 35.1 | (0.08) | 41.0 | (0.19) | 38.6 | (0.08) | 46.5 | (0.21) | 39.7 | (0.09) | 47.4 | (0.22) | 45.4 | (0.18) | 38.5 | (0.16) | 28.2 | (0.15) | |||||||||||
| Sweden | 30.1 | 33.6 | 29.6 | 37.3 | 33.9 | (0.11) | 42.2 | (0.23) | 39.8 | (0.12) | 46.4 | (0.26) | 44.0 | (0.18) | 48.4 | (0.38) | 44.6 | (0.17) | 49.1 | (0.36) | 53.5 | (0.35) | 42.0 | (0.33) | 32.6 | (0.32) | |||||||||||
| Switzerland | 24.2 | 25.6 | 28.8 | 31.0 | 33.9 | (0.16) | 37.4 | (0.39) | 39.8 | (0.17) | 46.5 | (0.41) | 44.4 | (0.18) | 52.7 | (0.43) | 45.3 | (0.18) | 53.0 | (0.44) | 50.6 | (0.35) | 42.7 | (0.32) | 34.7 | (0.31) | |||||||||||
Turkey |
8.3 | 8.9 | 10.2 | 12.5 | 13.1 | 4 | (0.18) | 17.4 | 4 | (0.34) | 18.0 | 4 | (0.19) | 27.5 | 4 | (0.40) | 22.0 | 4 | (0.20) | 35.3 | 4 | (0.42) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | |||||
| United Kingdom | 25.7 | 28.9 | 29.7 | 35.3 | 38.2 | 4 | (0.27) | 46.0 | 4 | (0.54) | 44.2 | (0.23) | 49.9 | (0.48) | 47.2 | (0.24) | 51.8 | (0.50) | 49.4 | (0.26) | 55.8 | (0.57) | 55.6 | (0.53) | 46.2 | (0.50) | 39.4 | (0.47) | |||||||||
| United States2 | 36.5 | 38.1 | 39.1 | 39.4 | 41.7 | (0.15) | 42.3 | (0.30) | 44.6 | (0.16) | 46.5 | (0.31) | 48.3 | (0.16) | 50.4 | (0.33) | 50.1 | (0.18) | 51.9 | (0.36) | 53.0 | (0.34) | 50.9 | (0.36) | 44.3 | (0.36) | |||||||||||
Other reporting countries |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| China2 | --- | --- | --- | --- | 9.7 | (---) | 17.9 | (---) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | (---) | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | |||||||||||
| Russian Federation2 | --- | --- | --- | --- | 50.4 | (0.06) | 52.5 | (0.13) | 52.4 | (0.06) | 56.3 | (0.13) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | |||||||||||
| ---Not available. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| †Not applicable. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 Refers to the mean of the data values for all reporting Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, to which each country reporting data contributes equally. The average includes all current OECD countries for which a given year's data are available, even if they were not members of OECD in that year. Standard errors for the OECD average were estimated by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2 Although all data for years prior to 2015 were originally calculated using the 1997 version of the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED), the footnoted countries revised earlier years' data to align with the 2011 version of ISCED, which is the most recent. Most of these countries revised all of their data for years prior to 2015. The exceptions are Denmark (which revised only 2010 data), Mexico (which revised only 2005 and 2010 data), and Spain (which revised only 2010 data). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3 All standard errors shown for Canada were calculated by Statistics Canada. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4 Standard errors were estimated by NCES. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 5 Data for all years include awards from some postsecondary nondegree programs (i.e., awards that are below the associate's degree level). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NOTE: Data in this table include all tertiary degrees, which correspond to all degrees at the associate’s level and above in the United States. The International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) was revised in 2011. Unless otherwise noted, all data for years prior to 2015 were calculated using the previous version, ISCED 1997. ISCED 2011 was used to calculate all data for 2015 and later years. Under ISCED 2011, tertiary degrees are classified at the following levels: level 5 (corresponding to an associate's degree in the United States), level 6 (a bachelor's or equivalent degree), level 7 (a master's or equivalent degree), and level 8 (a doctoral or equivalent degree). For more information on OECD and NCES estimation methodology used for this table, see the "Online Education Database" section of the entry for OECD in Appendix A: Guide to Sources. Standard errors for 2000 and 2005 have been excluded due to limited data availability. Some data have been revised from previously published figures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Online Education Database, retrieved September 16, 2021, from https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx. United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, World Population Prospects 2019. (This table was prepared September 2021.) |
