Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Australia
Australia: Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from was 4.5% in 2023. ▼ Falling
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 4.5%.
That represents a change of up 6.0% on the previous year and down 10.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Australia peaked at 5.9% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 4.0%, in 2002.
That places Australia 82nd out of 121 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 20 years of available data.
Percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from in Australia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 5.1% | — |
| 2000 | 5.4% | +5.1% |
| 2002 | 4.0% | -26.0% |
| 2003 | 4.8% | +20.3% |
| 2005 | 5.0% | +5.3% |
| 2006 | 4.9% | -3.5% |
| 2007 | 4.5% | -6.9% |
| 2008 | 4.3% | -3.8% |
| 2009 | 4.2% | -2.4% |
| 2011 | 4.4% | +4.2% |
| 2013 | 5.0% | +13.0% |
| 2014 | 4.8% | -3.7% |
| 2015 | 5.9% | +22.3% |
| 2017 | 5.5% | -6.4% |
| 2018 | 4.7% | -13.8% |
| 2019 | 4.2% | -10.9% |
| 2020 | 4.2% | -0.7% |
| 2021 | 4.5% | +6.1% |
| 2022 | 4.2% | -5.6% |
| 2023 | 4.5% | +6.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 5.1% | 5.1% | 5.1% | 1 |
| 2000s | 4.6% | 4.0% | 5.4% | 8 |
| 2010s | 4.9% | 4.2% | 5.9% | 7 |
| 2020s | 4.3% | 4.2% | 4.5% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More education data for Australia
- 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)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), per capita 0.0835 units per person (2024)
- Enrolment in primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.10 million (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 4.5% 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 5.9% in 2015.
- What is the lowest percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.0% in 2002.
- How does Australia rank for percentage of graduates from tertiary education graduating from?
- Australia ranks 82nd out of 121 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 10.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- 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 Social Sciences, Journalism and Information programmes, male (%). 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