TOP 10 Countries by Share of Population with Tertiary Education (25–64, 2025)
Why tertiary education has become a core pillar of competitiveness
Over the last two decades, tertiary education has moved from being an elite pathway to a mass experience in many advanced economies. In the leading countries, more than half of adults aged 25–64 now hold a tertiary degree or equivalent. This expansion has reshaped labour markets, productivity and inequality – and has raised new questions about quality, relevance and equity. This section looks at the ten countries with the highest share of tertiary-educated adults in 2025, how quickly they have expanded participation since 2000, and what this means for economic and social outcomes.
Table 1. Share of population 25–64 with tertiary education, Top 10 countries, 2025
| Rank | Country | Tertiary-educated adults 25–64, % |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Canada | 64 |
| 2 | South Korea | 62 |
| 3 | Japan | 60 |
| 4 | Ireland | 59 |
| 5 | United Kingdom | 57 |
| 6 | Luxembourg | 56 |
| 7 | United States | 55 |
| 8 | Australia | 55 |
| 9 | Israel | 54 |
| 10 | Netherlands | 53 |
Even within this Top 10, there is meaningful variation. A gap of ten percentage points between countries at the top and bottom of the ranking represents millions of adults with or without tertiary qualifications – and, typically, large differences in the structure of employment, average wages and exposure to technological change.
The group includes English-speaking countries with long-established mass higher education systems (Canada, United States, United Kingdom, Australia), East Asian systems with intense focus on education as a driver of growth (South Korea, Japan), and small European economies that have rapidly scaled up tertiary participation in the last two decades (Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Israel).
Chart 1. Adults 25–64 with tertiary education, Top 10 countries, 2025
The bar chart below compares the share of adults with tertiary education across the Top 10 countries. While all of them are well above the OECD average, there is still a sizeable spread that reflects different histories of system expansion, demographic structures and migration patterns.
From elite to mass tertiary education in one generation
For most of the Top 10 countries, the striking feature is not just how high tertiary attainment is today, but how quickly it has grown since 2000. In many systems, the share of tertiary-educated adults has doubled within a single generation, driven by a combination of demographic change, higher enrolment, and increased completion.
In South Korea and Japan, the roots of high tertiary attainment go back to rapid post-war expansion of upper-secondary and tertiary education. By 2000 these countries already had comparatively high graduation rates, and since then they have continued to expand access while improving quality in research universities and professionally oriented institutions. Canada, Australia and the United States built on long-standing systems that combine universities with large community college and vocational sectors, and that attract international students at scale.
In Ireland, Israel, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, the most dramatic changes have occurred since 2000. These countries invested heavily in higher education as a lever for economic transformation – from agriculture and low-value manufacturing towards high-productivity services, finance and technology-intensive industries. Policies to widen participation among women and under-represented groups have also contributed to the rise in tertiary attainment, especially among younger cohorts.
Table 2. Adults 25–64 with tertiary education, 2000 vs 2025
The table below illustrates the scale of change. In every Top 10 country, the share of tertiary-educated adults has increased substantially since 2000, with the largest jumps in countries that started from more modest levels.
| Country | 2000, % | 2025, % |
|---|---|---|
| Canada | 40 | 64 |
| South Korea | 30 | 62 |
| Japan | 32 | 60 |
| Ireland | 25 | 59 |
| United Kingdom | 29 | 57 |
| Luxembourg | 24 | 56 |
| United States | 35 | 55 |
| Australia | 27 | 55 |
| Israel | 30 | 54 |
| Netherlands | 26 | 53 |
The numbers underscore how tertiary education has become a mass phenomenon. In Canada, South Korea and Ireland, the share of tertiary-educated adults has increased by more than 20 percentage points, effectively transforming the skill profile of the working-age population.
At the same time, rapid expansion raises questions about capacity and quality. Systems have had to recruit and train large numbers of academic staff, build or modernise campuses, and ensure that curricula remain aligned with evolving labour-market needs. Countries that underinvest in these areas risk a growing mismatch between formal qualifications and the actual skills valued by employers.
Who benefits? Age, field of study and inequality
Aggregate attainment rates hide important differences in who accesses and completes tertiary education. In most Top 10 countries, younger adults (25–34) are significantly more likely to hold a tertiary degree than older adults (55–64), reflecting the gradual expansion of upper-secondary and higher education since the 1980s. This generational gradient is particularly steep in countries such as Ireland and South Korea.
Field-of-study choices shape how tertiary expansion translates into economic outcomes. Systems with a strong focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) – alongside high-quality programmes in health, education and business – often see larger productivity gains. Where expansion has been concentrated in low-demand fields or programmes with weak labour-market links, graduates may face underemployment or skills mismatch despite the headline growth in attainment.
Finally, socio-economic background remains a powerful predictor of tertiary participation and completion. In many of the Top 10 countries, young people from the lowest income quintile are still under-represented in universities, and first-generation students face higher dropout risks. Targeted support – including financial aid, academic counselling and flexible learning pathways – is crucial to ensure that tertiary expansion contributes to social mobility rather than reinforcing existing inequalities.
Convergence from below: emerging economies entering the tertiary race
The Top 10 ranking is only one part of the global picture. Several large emerging economies have also expanded tertiary education rapidly since 2000, even if their current attainment levels remain below those of the leaders. Their trajectories point to a gradual convergence in human-capital endowments – with important implications for trade, investment and innovation.
The line chart below shows the evolution of tertiary attainment in three such countries – China, Brazil and Poland – compared with Canada as a high-attainment reference. At the turn of the century, the gap between Canada and these countries was very wide. Since then, sustained expansion of upper-secondary and tertiary education, combined with rapid economic growth and rising household incomes, has driven strong increases in tertiary attainment.
Full convergence is still a long way off, especially when it comes to quality and research capacity. Yet the direction of change is clear: a growing share of the world’s tertiary graduates are now trained outside the traditional education powerhouses of Western Europe and North America.
Chart 2. Adults 25–64 with tertiary education, selected emerging economies vs Canada, 2000–2025
Each line represents the share of adults 25–64 with tertiary education. The data illustrate how emerging economies have narrowed the gap with high-attainment countries, even if significant differences remain.
The unfinished agenda: quality, relevance and inclusion
High tertiary-attainment rates are not an end in themselves. In some systems, rapid expansion has outpaced the ability of institutions to maintain quality, leading to concerns about overloaded curricula, under-resourced faculties and graduates who lack key skills. Employers may respond by raising credential requirements further, fuelling educational inflation rather than genuine productivity gains.
Relevance is another critical dimension. Where tertiary systems remain disconnected from labour-market needs, graduates may struggle to find stable, well-matched employment. Stronger partnerships with employers, work-based learning and better career guidance can help align programmes with evolving demand, especially in fast-changing fields such as digital technologies, green industries and health.
Finally, equity concerns persist even in high-attainment countries. Students from low-income families, rural areas and minority backgrounds often face barriers at each stage of the education pipeline – from early childhood through upper-secondary and into higher education. Addressing these barriers requires long-term, system-wide efforts that go beyond tertiary institutions alone.
How the indicator is constructed: definitions and limitations
International statistics on tertiary attainment typically rely on labour-force surveys or population censuses in which respondents report their highest completed level of education. These qualifications are then mapped to standardised categories based on the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED). Adults are counted as having tertiary education if they have completed ISCED level 5 or above, including short-cycle tertiary programmes.
Cross-country comparability is generally good among OECD members, but differences remain. Some countries have large professional or vocational sectors at ISCED level 5 that play a similar economic role to academic universities, while others concentrate most tertiary students in longer bachelor’s and master’s programmes. In addition, changes in survey design or classification over time can introduce breaks in series that complicate long-run trend analysis.
Tertiary attainment should therefore be interpreted alongside complementary indicators: entry and graduation rates, measures of study fields, spending per student, and learning-outcome proxies such as graduate employment rates or earnings premiums. Taken together, these indicators offer a richer picture of how effectively tertiary systems are building and deploying advanced skills.
Primary data sources for this overview
The figures and trends discussed in this section draw on harmonised international datasets. While precise estimates may be revised as new data become available, the broad patterns – rapid expansion in the Top 10, and strong growth in several emerging economies – are robust across recent releases.
- OECD, Education at a Glance. Indicator on educational attainment of adults by age group and level of education completed, including the share of adults 25–64 with tertiary education. Available via the OECD statistics portal: https://stats.oecd.org.
- World Bank, World Development Indicators. Selected indicators on educational attainment and gross enrolment ratios at the tertiary level, especially for non-OECD emerging economies. Accessible through the DataBank interface: https://databank.worldbank.org.
Top 10 countries by tertiary education: tables and charts (ZIP)
This archive contains ready-to-use Excel tables and static charts for the share of adults 25–64 with tertiary education in the Top 10 countries (2025) and for the long-run trends since 2000. You can reuse these assets in reports, slide decks or internal dashboards.
