Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Ireland
Ireland: Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary was 92.5% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Ireland, 1971–2023
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in cumulative.
Analysis
Ireland recorded 92.5% for educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in 2023. That is the highest value across all 21 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.7% on the previous year and up 10.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Ireland peaked at 92.5% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 32.1%, in 1971.
That places Ireland 36th out of 134 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 21 years of available data.
Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Ireland, year by year
| Year | cumulative | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 32.1% | — |
| 1981 | 47.6% | +48.6% |
| 1991 | 61.5% | +29.0% |
| 2006 | 83.9% | +36.4% |
| 2007 | 81.9% | -2.4% |
| 2008 | 79.1% | -3.4% |
| 2009 | 79.9% | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 81.1% | +1.5% |
| 2011 | 83.5% | +3.0% |
| 2012 | 82.8% | -0.8% |
| 2013 | 84.0% | +1.4% |
| 2014 | 86.9% | +3.4% |
| 2015 | 87.1% | +0.3% |
| 2016 | 87.4% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 86.2% | -1.4% |
| 2018 | 88.2% | +2.4% |
| 2019 | 88.3% | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 89.3% | +1.1% |
| 2021 | 90.7% | +1.6% |
| 2022 | 90.9% | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 92.5% | +1.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 32.1% | 32.1% | 32.1% | 1 |
| 1980s | 47.6% | 47.6% | 47.6% | 1 |
| 1990s | 61.5% | 61.5% | 61.5% | 1 |
| 2000s | 81.2% | 79.1% | 83.9% | 4 |
| 2010s | 85.5% | 81.1% | 88.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 90.8% | 89.3% | 92.5% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More education data for Ireland
- Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of secondary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,021 tertiary education (2022)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0495 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 42,162 (2023)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 2 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 65.7% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 18.1% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Ireland?
- Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in Ireland was 92.5% in 2023, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 92.5% in 2023.
- What is the lowest educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 32.1% in 1971.
- How does Ireland rank for educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary?
- Ireland ranks 36th out of 134 countries with data for 2023.
- Is educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary, population 25+, total (%) (cumulative). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The percentage of population ages 25 and over that attained or completed lower secondary education.