Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Ireland
Ireland: Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or was 1.01 GPIA in 2023. ▼ Falling
Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Ireland, 1971–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in GPIA.
Analysis
The most recent figure for educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Ireland is 1.01 GPIA, measured in 2023.
The figure is up 0.2% on the previous year and down 1.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Ireland peaked at 1.13 GPIA in 1971 and was at its lowest, 0.9961 GPIA, in 2007.
That places Ireland 24th out of 131 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 20 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Ireland, year by year
| Year | GPIA | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 1.13 GPIA | — |
| 1981 | 1.08 GPIA | -3.7% |
| 1991 | 1.06 GPIA | -2.6% |
| 2006 | 1.04 GPIA | -1.8% |
| 2007 | 0.9961 GPIA | -4.0% |
| 2008 | 1.02 GPIA | +2.6% |
| 2009 | 1.02 GPIA | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 1.01 GPIA | -1.0% |
| 2011 | 1.03 GPIA | +1.3% |
| 2012 | 1.02 GPIA | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 1.02 GPIA | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 1.01 GPIA | -1.0% |
| 2015 | 1.01 GPIA | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 1.02 GPIA | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 1.02 GPIA | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 1.02 GPIA | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 1.02 GPIA | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 1.02 GPIA | -0.3% |
| 2022 | 1.01 GPIA | -0.6% |
| 2023 | 1.01 GPIA | +0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.13 GPIA | 1.13 GPIA | 1.13 GPIA | 1 |
| 1980s | 1.08 GPIA | 1.08 GPIA | 1.08 GPIA | 1 |
| 1990s | 1.06 GPIA | 1.06 GPIA | 1.06 GPIA | 1 |
| 2000s | 1.02 GPIA | 0.9961 GPIA | 1.04 GPIA | 4 |
| 2010s | 1.02 GPIA | 1.01 GPIA | 1.03 GPIA | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.01 GPIA | 1.01 GPIA | 1.02 GPIA | 3 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More education data for Ireland
- 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)
- Lower secondary school starting age 13 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 5 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 96.48 (2022)
- School enrollment, primary 96.5% (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Ireland?
- Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Ireland was 1.01 GPIA in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 1.13 GPIA in 1971.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.9961 GPIA in 2007.
- How does Ireland rank for educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or?
- Ireland ranks 24th out of 131 countries with data for 2023.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or higher, population 25+ years, adjusted gender parity index (GPIA). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 20 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release