Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Ireland
Ireland: Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from was 6.4% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Ireland, 1998–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2022, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Ireland stood at 6.4%.
That represents a change of up 8.9% on the previous year and down 57.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Ireland peaked at 14.9% in 2012 and was at its lowest, 3.4%, in 1999.
That places Ireland 84th out of 124 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 19 years of available data.
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 4.5% | — |
| 1999 | 3.4% | -24.4% |
| 2000 | 3.8% | +9.8% |
| 2001 | 4.0% | +7.3% |
| 2002 | 5.0% | +24.9% |
| 2003 | 3.7% | -26.2% |
| 2004 | 4.7% | +26.9% |
| 2009 | 5.5% | +17.3% |
| 2010 | 5.4% | -2.7% |
| 2012 | 14.9% | +176.9% |
| 2013 | 6.4% | -57.3% |
| 2014 | 6.2% | -1.9% |
| 2015 | 6.8% | +9.6% |
| 2016 | 6.3% | -8.1% |
| 2018 | 5.8% | -7.0% |
| 2019 | 6.2% | +6.7% |
| 2020 | 6.1% | -1.9% |
| 2021 | 5.9% | -3.7% |
| 2022 | 6.4% | +8.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 4.0% | 3.4% | 4.5% | 2 |
| 2000s | 4.5% | 3.7% | 5.5% | 6 |
| 2010s | 7.3% | 5.4% | 14.9% | 8 |
| 2020s | 6.1% | 5.9% | 6.4% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More education data for Ireland
- 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)
- 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)
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 6.4% 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 14.9% in 2012.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.4% in 1999.
- How does Ireland rank for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from?
- Ireland ranks 84th out of 124 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 57.0%. 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 Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from Social Sciences, Journalism and Information programmes, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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