Educational attainment rate … attainment short-cycle tertiary rural in Ireland
Ireland: Educational attainment rate … attainment short-cycle tertiary rural was 36.3% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland, 1993–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland is 36.3%, measured in 2022. That is the highest value across all 26 years on record.
That represents a change of up 9.3% on the previous year and up 48.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education in Ireland peaked at 36.3% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 13.5%, in 1993.
Ireland ranks 8th of 95 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 26 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate … attainment short-cycle tertiary rural in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | 13.5% | — |
| 1994 | 13.6% | +0.9% |
| 1995 | 14.6% | +7.2% |
| 1996 | 16.2% | +11.3% |
| 1997 | 16.8% | +4.0% |
| 2002 | 17.1% | +1.3% |
| 2003 | 19.0% | +11.6% |
| 2004 | 20.0% | +5.2% |
| 2005 | 20.3% | +1.4% |
| 2006 | 21.2% | +4.4% |
| 2007 | 23.2% | +9.6% |
| 2008 | 24.1% | +3.7% |
| 2009 | 25.9% | +7.4% |
| 2010 | 27.1% | +4.7% |
| 2011 | 21.0% | -22.3% |
| 2012 | 24.5% | +16.4% |
| 2013 | 26.0% | +6.2% |
| 2014 | 26.2% | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 27.2% | +3.6% |
| 2016 | 26.8% | -1.3% |
| 2017 | 25.1% | -6.4% |
| 2018 | 28.8% | +14.6% |
| 2019 | 28.6% | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 31.2% | +9.0% |
| 2021 | 33.2% | +6.5% |
| 2022 | 36.3% | +9.3% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 36.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 22.5%, 1.6× the median. (41 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 36.3% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 21.9%, 1.7× the median. (40 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 14.9% | 13.5% | 16.8% | 5 |
| 2000s | 21.3% | 17.1% | 25.9% | 8 |
| 2010s | 26.1% | 21.0% | 28.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 33.5% | 31.2% | 36.3% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
- 5 Luxembourg 40.7% compare
- 6 Switzerland 39.8% compare
- 7 South Korea 39.2% compare
- 9 United States 35.7% compare
- 10 Belgium 32.7% compare
- 11 Netherlands 30.3% compare
More education data for Ireland
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 99.47 (2022)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 98.19 (2022)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 32,531 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 1,942 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 52,745 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 49,975 (2022)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 456,625 (2022)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 548,873 (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.49 % change on previous year (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 36.3% in 2022, 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 36.3% in 2022.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.5% in 1993.
- How does Ireland rank for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- Ireland ranks 8th out of 95 countries with data for 2022.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 48.2%. 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, rural, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release