Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America
United States of America: Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from was 17.0% in 2016. ▲ Rising
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America, 1999–2016
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2016, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America stood at 17.0%.
That represents a change of up 1.3% on the previous year and up 25.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America peaked at 17.3% in 2012 and was at its lowest, 11.8%, in 2002.
That places United States of America 22nd out of 98 countries with data for 2016, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 16 years of available data.
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 13.4% | — |
| 2000 | 12.6% | -6.5% |
| 2001 | 12.6% | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 11.8% | -6.5% |
| 2005 | 12.8% | +7.8% |
| 2006 | 13.5% | +6.1% |
| 2007 | 14.2% | +5.2% |
| 2008 | 14.8% | +4.1% |
| 2009 | 15.2% | +2.7% |
| 2010 | 15.7% | +3.1% |
| 2011 | 16.5% | +4.9% |
| 2012 | 17.3% | +5.1% |
| 2013 | 15.7% | -9.4% |
| 2014 | 16.2% | +3.1% |
| 2015 | 16.8% | +3.8% |
| 2016 | 17.0% | +1.3% |
United States of America compared with similar countries
- United States of America's 17.0% is above the median for high income countries, which is 13.8%, 1.2× the median. (56 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 13.4% | 13.4% | 13.4% | 1 |
| 2000s | 13.5% | 11.8% | 15.2% | 8 |
| 2010s | 16.5% | 15.7% | 17.3% | 7 |
Countries ranked near United States of America
More education data for United States of America
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1.74 million (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 419,732 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 4.34 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 4.14 million (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 25.35 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 23.83 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.33 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0708 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America?
- Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in United States of America was 17.0% in 2016, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in United States of America?
- The highest recorded value was 17.3% in 2012.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in United States of America?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.8% in 2002.
- How does United States of America rank for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from?
- United States of America ranks 22nd out of 98 countries with data for 2016.
- Is percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from rising or falling in United States of America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 25.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States of America data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from Health and Welfare programmes, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of all tertiary graduates who completed health and welfare programmes in the reference year.