Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland
Ireland: Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education was 57.0% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland, 1993–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland is 57.0%, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 27 years on record.
That represents a change of up 6.7% on the previous year and up 35.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland peaked at 57.0% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 17.2%, in 1993.
Ireland ranks 5th of 101 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | 17.2% | — |
| 1994 | 17.3% | +0.6% |
| 1995 | 19.9% | +14.7% |
| 1996 | 22.5% | +13.1% |
| 1997 | 21.4% | -5.0% |
| 2002 | 26.5% | +23.9% |
| 2003 | 28.4% | +7.2% |
| 2004 | 29.8% | +5.1% |
| 2005 | 31.3% | +4.9% |
| 2006 | 33.0% | +5.5% |
| 2007 | 36.2% | +9.5% |
| 2008 | 37.9% | +4.7% |
| 2009 | 38.2% | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 39.2% | +2.4% |
| 2011 | 36.6% | -6.5% |
| 2012 | 41.0% | +12.0% |
| 2013 | 42.1% | +2.7% |
| 2014 | 44.9% | +6.6% |
| 2015 | 45.3% | +0.8% |
| 2016 | 46.2% | +2.2% |
| 2017 | 41.5% | -10.3% |
| 2018 | 47.5% | +14.4% |
| 2019 | 47.6% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 49.3% | +3.5% |
| 2021 | 53.3% | +8.1% |
| 2022 | 53.4% | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 57.0% | +6.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 19.7% | 17.2% | 22.5% | 5 |
| 2000s | 32.7% | 26.5% | 38.2% | 8 |
| 2010s | 43.2% | 36.6% | 47.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 53.3% | 49.3% | 57.0% | 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 57.0% 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 57.0% in 2023.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.2% in 1993.
- How does Ireland rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- Ireland ranks 5th out of 101 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 35.4%. 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, urban, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release