Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Ireland
Ireland: Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from was 17.0% in 2022. ▼ Falling
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Ireland, 1998–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Ireland recorded 17.0% for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in 2022.
The figure is up 4.3% on the previous year and down 27.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Ireland peaked at 26.6% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 14.8%, in 2018.
Ireland ranks 76th of 123 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 19 years of available data.
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 26.6% | — |
| 1999 | 22.5% | -15.4% |
| 2000 | 23.8% | +5.9% |
| 2001 | 21.9% | -8.1% |
| 2002 | 20.8% | -4.8% |
| 2003 | 22.6% | +8.3% |
| 2004 | 24.4% | +8.3% |
| 2009 | 21.3% | -12.8% |
| 2010 | 23.2% | +8.9% |
| 2012 | 23.4% | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 20.6% | -12.1% |
| 2014 | 18.3% | -11.1% |
| 2015 | 18.0% | -1.8% |
| 2016 | 17.6% | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 14.8% | -15.9% |
| 2019 | 16.4% | +10.7% |
| 2020 | 17.0% | +3.5% |
| 2021 | 16.3% | -4.0% |
| 2022 | 17.0% | +4.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 24.6% | 22.5% | 26.6% | 2 |
| 2000s | 22.5% | 20.8% | 24.4% | 6 |
| 2010s | 19.0% | 14.8% | 23.4% | 8 |
| 2020s | 16.7% | 16.3% | 17.0% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
- 73 Honduras 18.0% compare
- 74 El Salvador 17.5% compare
- 75 Bahrain 17.0% compare
- 77 New Zealand 16.6% compare
- 78 Brunei Darussalam 16.1% compare
- 79 Jordan 15.8% compare
More education data for Ireland
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 548,873 (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.49 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1053 units per person (2022)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 548,873 (2022)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth -1.49 % change on previous year (2022)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), per capita 0.1053 units per person (2022)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 270,411 (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Ireland?
- Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Ireland was 17.0% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 26.6% in 1998.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.8% in 2018.
- How does Ireland rank for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from?
- Ireland ranks 76th out of 123 countries with data for 2022.
- Is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 27.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from Engineering, Manufacturing and Construction programmes, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 19 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release