Key Points:
In 2023, 43% of the EU population aged 25-34 had a higher education degree, up 1% from 2022.
Romania has the lowest share of higher education graduates in this age group, at 23%.
13 EU countries already meet the EU's 2030 target of 45% higher education graduates in this age group.
Women are more likely to have higher education degrees than men in all EU member states.
The gap between male and female graduates has widened in recent years.
Detailed Summary:
The share of the population with higher education degrees in the EU has been steadily increasing over the past decade. In 2023, 43% of the EU population aged 25-34 had a higher education degree, up 1% from 2022. However, there is still significant variation between countries.
Romania remains the EU country with the lowest share of higher education graduates in this age group, at 23%. This is followed by Hungary (29%) and Italy (31%). In contrast, Ireland has the highest share of higher education graduates (63%), followed by Cyprus (62%) and Luxembourg (60%).
13 EU countries already meet the EU's 2030 target of 45% higher education graduates in the 25-34 age group. These countries are: Ireland, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Sweden, Spain, France, Belgium, Denmark, Malta, Poland, and Latvia.
Women are more likely to have higher education degrees than men in all EU member states. The gap between male and female graduates has widened in recent years. In 2023, 48.8% of women aged 25-34 had a higher education degree, compared to 37.6% of men. This represents a gender gap of 11.2 percentage points.
Conclusion:
The EU has made progress in increasing the share of the population with higher education degrees. However, there is still a long way to go to reach the EU's 2030 target of 45% graduates in the 25-34 age group. Romania, in particular, needs to make significant strides to improve its higher education attainment rates.
Additional Notes:
The Eurostat data used in this summary is based on completed higher education programs, which includes both bachelor's and master's degrees.
The EU's 2030 target for higher education attainment is part of the Europe 2020 strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth.
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