Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Sweden
Sweden: Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from was 15.7% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Sweden, 1999–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Sweden stood at 15.7%.
That represents a change of down 2.4% on the previous year and down 3.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Sweden peaked at 17.9% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 11.7%, in 1999.
That places Sweden 109th out of 122 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Sweden, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 11.7% | — |
| 2000 | 12.7% | +9.1% |
| 2001 | 13.2% | +4.0% |
| 2002 | 12.2% | -7.8% |
| 2003 | 12.0% | -1.6% |
| 2004 | 11.7% | -2.2% |
| 2005 | 13.1% | +11.8% |
| 2006 | 13.1% | -0.3% |
| 2007 | 13.4% | +2.7% |
| 2008 | 13.3% | -1.3% |
| 2009 | 13.5% | +1.7% |
| 2010 | 13.6% | +0.7% |
| 2011 | 14.0% | +2.7% |
| 2012 | 16.3% | +16.8% |
| 2013 | 16.2% | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 17.9% | +10.3% |
| 2016 | 17.2% | -3.8% |
| 2017 | 16.7% | -2.7% |
| 2018 | 16.8% | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 16.6% | -1.1% |
| 2020 | 15.9% | -4.2% |
| 2021 | 17.0% | +6.5% |
| 2022 | 16.1% | -5.2% |
| 2023 | 15.7% | -2.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 11.7% | 11.7% | 11.7% | 1 |
| 2000s | 12.8% | 11.7% | 13.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 16.1% | 13.6% | 17.9% | 9 |
| 2020s | 16.2% | 15.7% | 17.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
- 106 Azerbaijan 16.5% compare
- 107 Jordan 16.5% compare
- 108 Norway 16.0% compare
- 110 Eritrea 15.7% compare
- 111 United States of America 15.7% compare
- 112 Burkina Faso 15.0% compare
More education data for Sweden
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 1,302 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 235,975 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 222,360 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 987,895 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 859,847 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.8572 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0814 units per person (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Sweden?
- Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Sweden was 15.7% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 17.9% in 2015.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.7% in 1999.
- How does Sweden rank for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from?
- Sweden ranks 109th out of 122 countries with data for 2023.
- Is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sweden 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, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release