Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education was 50.5% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 1971–2021
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland recorded 50.5% for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in 2021. That is the highest value across all 10 years on record.
The figure is up 2.7% on the previous year and up 58.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland peaked at 50.5% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 6.6%, in 1971.
That places United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 11th out of 128 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 10 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 6.6% | — |
| 2009 | 31.3% | +374.9% |
| 2010 | 33.9% | +8.1% |
| 2011 | 31.9% | -5.9% |
| 2012 | 37.3% | +17.0% |
| 2013 | 38.5% | +3.3% |
| 2014 | 40.1% | +4.1% |
| 2017 | 45.1% | +12.4% |
| 2020 | 49.2% | +9.0% |
| 2021 | 50.5% | +2.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 6.6% | 6.6% | 6.6% | 1 |
| 2000s | 31.3% | 31.3% | 31.3% | 1 |
| 2010s | 37.8% | 31.9% | 45.1% | 6 |
| 2020s | 49.9% | 49.2% | 50.5% | 2 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
More education data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 281,128 (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 63.3% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 17.0% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 11 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 5 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 102.17 (2023)
- School enrollment, primary 102.2% (2023)
All data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland →
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was 50.5% in 2021, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 50.5% in 2021.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.6% in 1971.
- How does United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 11th out of 128 countries with data for 2021.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 58.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern 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, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 10 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release