Youth Indicators, 2005: Trends in the Well-Being of American Youth - Indicator 23: International Higher Education Enrollment

Indicator 23: International Higher Education Enrollment

Figure 23. Enrollment of 18- to 24-year-olds in higher education as a percentage of all 18- to 24-year-olds, by country: 1999 and 2001

¹Data on doctoral students are missing for 1999 and 2001.
²The United Kingdom includes England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.
NOTE: These countries were selected for comparison because they are relatively similar to the United States in their economic development and because they are among the Group of Seven (G-7) countries. Higher education refers to International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) level 5A (academic higher education-first stage), 5B (technical and vocational higher education), and 6 (academic higher education-second stage/doctoral studies).
SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Education Database, 2001, unpublished data, and U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, Current Population Survey (CPS), October, various years, unpublished tabulations.

In 2001, the United States had an enrollment rate of 27 percent in higher education for adults ages 18 to 29, including full- and part-time students, higher than the enrollment rates of the 5 other countries presented. Enrollment rates for 18- to 24-year-olds in 2001 were higher than or similar to those in 1999 for each of the countries. The enrollment rate for Canada increased by 3 percentage points, the rate for France increased by 1 percentage point, and the rates for Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States did not change.

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