Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Australia
Australia: Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from was 33.3% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Australia, 1999–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Australia stood at 33.3%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.3% on the previous year and down 12.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Australia peaked at 39.7% in 2011 and was at its lowest, 29.1%, in 1999.
Australia ranks 29th of 124 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 20 years of available data.
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Australia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 29.1% | — |
| 2000 | 29.9% | +2.8% |
| 2002 | 33.5% | +12.1% |
| 2003 | 34.0% | +1.4% |
| 2005 | 34.4% | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 36.2% | +5.3% |
| 2007 | 38.3% | +5.8% |
| 2008 | 38.4% | +0.2% |
| 2009 | 39.3% | +2.4% |
| 2011 | 39.7% | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 37.8% | -4.7% |
| 2014 | 36.4% | -3.8% |
| 2015 | 34.2% | -6.0% |
| 2017 | 33.4% | -2.4% |
| 2018 | 35.9% | +7.6% |
| 2019 | 36.4% | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 36.6% | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 35.7% | -2.3% |
| 2022 | 34.8% | -2.7% |
| 2023 | 33.3% | -4.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 29.1% | 29.1% | 29.1% | 1 |
| 2000s | 35.5% | 29.9% | 39.3% | 8 |
| 2010s | 36.3% | 33.4% | 39.7% | 7 |
| 2020s | 35.1% | 33.3% | 36.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Australia
- 26 Mexico 34.8% compare
- 27 Macau, China 34.6% compare
- 28 Republic of Moldova 33.8% compare
- 30 Mozambique 33.3% compare
- 31 Thailand 33.0% compare
- 32 Brazil 32.3% compare
More education data for Australia
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 292,593 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.65 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.27 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.4362 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0835 units per person (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 2.27 million (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth 0.4362 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Australia?
- Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Australia was 33.3% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 39.7% in 2011.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 29.1% in 1999.
- How does Australia rank for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from?
- Australia ranks 29th out of 124 countries with data for 2023.
- Is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from Business, Administration and Law programmes, both sexes (%). 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