Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland
Ireland: Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education was 61.2% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland, 2012–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland stood at 61.2%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.5% on the previous year and up 33.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland peaked at 61.5% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 45.9%, in 2012.
That places Ireland 1st out of 31 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 11 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 45.9% | — |
| 2014 | 47.1% | +2.7% |
| 2015 | 49.0% | +4.1% |
| 2016 | 50.0% | +2.0% |
| 2017 | 52.2% | +4.3% |
| 2018 | 52.8% | +1.3% |
| 2019 | 51.8% | -1.9% |
| 2020 | 54.1% | +4.4% |
| 2021 | 56.9% | +5.2% |
| 2022 | 61.5% | +8.1% |
| 2023 | 61.2% | -0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 49.8% | 45.9% | 52.8% | 7 |
| 2020s | 58.4% | 54.1% | 61.5% | 4 |
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 short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland?
- Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland was 61.2% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 61.5% in 2022.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 45.9% in 2012.
- How does Ireland rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- Ireland ranks 1st out of 31 countries with data for 2023.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 33.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education or higher, population 25+ years, immigrant background, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 11 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release