Education and training statistics at regional level

Data extracted in May 2024.

Planned article update: September 2025.

Highlights

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In 2023, 72.3% of people aged 25–34 in the Lithuanian capital region of Sostinės regionas had a tertiary level of educational attainment; this was the highest regional share and considerably above the EU average of 43.1%.

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In 2023, 12.7% of the EU population aged 25–64 participated in education and training during the 4 weeks prior to the survey. Across EU regions, this share peaked at 41.3% in the Swedish capital region of Stockholm.

Source: Eurostat (edat_lfse_04)

Alongside the provision of health care, public expenditure on education is often considered one of the most important investments that can be made in people. Education has the potential to drive socioeconomic development forward: this is particularly the case in a globalised world, where a highly-skilled workforce can be an advantage in terms of productivity, innovation and competitiveness.

Education and training play a vital role in the economic and social strategies of the European Union (EU). In February 2021, a Council Resolution on a strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training towards the European Education Area and beyond (2021–2030) (2021/C 66/01) was adopted. The resolution sets a number of policy targets for the European Education Area designed to promote collaboration between EU countries and monitor progress; several of these targets are referred to within this chapter.

The European Year of Skills 2023/24 was designed to ‘promote reskilling and upskilling, helping people to get the right skills for quality jobs’. It was also designed to provide fresh impetus to help the EU reach 2 of its social targets that form part of the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan: to have, by 2030, at least 60% of adults in training every year, and at least 78% in employment.

The infographic above provides information for the 10 NUTS level 2 regions across the EU that recorded the highest shares of people (aged 25–34) with a tertiary level of educational attainment. In 2023, several of the highest shares were recorded in capital regions. This was the case in the Lithuanian capital region, where 72.3% of people aged 25–34 had a tertiary level of educational attainment, while the Polish, French, Irish, Swedish, Belgian and Dutch capital regions also recorded high shares, as did Cyprus.

Full article

This chapter presents data following the common progression of pupils and students through different levels of the education system (according to the International standard classification of education (ISCED); see box for more details), before looking at educational attainment levels, transitions from education into the labour market and adult education and training. Administrative data on the participation of pupils and students in various levels of education generally refer to 2022, while the latest information from other datasets (surveys) generally concerns 2023.

In 2022, there were an estimated 94.0 million pupils and students enrolled across the EU in all levels of education from pre-primary to tertiary (as covered by ISCED levels 02–8); this estimate is based on the latest information available for EU countries.

More about the data: classifying education levels

As national education systems vary in terms of structure and curricular content, statistics on education and training are compiled according to the international standard classification of education (ISCED).

ISCED is the reference classification for organising formal education programmes and related qualifications by education levels and fields into internationally agreed categories. The most recent version of the classification – ISCED 2011 – was adopted by the UNESCO General Conference in November 2011 and identifies the following levels of education

• early childhood education – ISCED level 0
  • early childhood educational development – ISCED level 01
  • pre-primary education – ISCED level 02
• primary education – ISCED level 1
• lower secondary education – ISCED level 2
• upper secondary education – ISCED level 3
• post-secondary non-tertiary education – ISCED level 4
• short-cycle tertiary education – ISCED level 5
• bachelor’s or equivalent level – ISCED level 6
• master’s or equivalent level – ISCED level 7
• doctoral (PhD) or equivalent level – ISCED level 8.

School attendance is compulsory – at least for primary and lower secondary education – across all of the EU countries.

Young people who have successfully completed lower secondary education may enter upper secondary education (ISCED level 3), when they generally have to choose certain subjects or specialisations to study, alongside their future education and/or career paths. Upper secondary (or intermediate) education typically ends in the EU when students are aged 17 or 18. These programmes are designed primarily to prepare students so that they may continue their studies at a tertiary level (general programmes), or to provide them with the necessary skills and competencies that are relevant for a specific occupation or trade (vocational programmes).

The term ‘tertiary education’ is used to refer to ISCED levels 5–8. It builds on secondary education, providing learning activities at a higher level of complexity. This level of higher education – provided by universities and other tertiary educational institutions – can play an important role in society, fostering innovation, increasing economic development and growth, and more generally improving individual well-being.

Enrolments

Participation in early childhood education

Research has shown that early experiences of children are often critical for their long-term development. Early childhood education and care programmes which are intentionally designed to support children’s cognitive, language, physical and socio-emotional development are considered as educational in the ISCED classification (ISCED level 0, early childhood education) .

Early childhood education programmes are typically designed to introduce young children to organised instruction outside of the family context. Programmes have an intentional education component and target children below the age of entry into primary education (ISCED level 1). Early childhood education programmes constitute the 1st level of education and training systems and play a key role in redressing ‘unequal’ life chances, tackling inequalities by preventing the formation of early skills gaps.

More about the data: statistics on early childhood education and care

Within the strategic framework towards European cooperation in education and training towards the European Education Area and beyond (2021–30), a key policy target concerns the share of children aged between 3 years and the starting age of compulsory primary education who are participating in early childhood education and care. Eurostat data on early childhood education (ISCED level 0) are used to measure progress towards the goal of having at least 96% of children in this age group participating in early childhood education and care by 2030 .

Within this section, regional statistics presented for Germany relate to NUTS level 1 regions, while national data are presented for the Netherlands.

Based on the latest available data, there were an estimated 15.5 million children (of any age) enrolled in early childhood education across the EU in 2022 (data for Belgium, Greece and Malta only cover pre-primary education). Map 1 shows a more detailed picture for 209 NUTS level 2 regions, it covers those pupils between the age of 3 and the starting age of compulsory education at primary level. There were considerable differences in regional participation rates in early childhood education, with the highest rates generally recorded in the westernmost regions of the EU and lower rates across most eastern regions. Capital regions had higher than average participation rates in some EU countries (for example, Bulgaria or Poland), whereas in others they recorded lower than average rates (for example, Ireland, Portugal or Sweden).

In 2022, there were 18 regions where practically every child (100.0%) between the age of 3 years and the age for starting compulsory primary education participated in early childhood education

Looking in more detail, by 2022 the share of children between the age of 3 years and the age for starting compulsory primary education participating in early childhood education had already reached the EU’s strategic target of 96.0% in more than 1 out of 3 EU regions for which data are available (78 out of 209 regions); they are shaded using 3 different teal tones in Map 1. These 78 regions already at or above the target made up a large proportion of the regions in Belgium, Denmark, Spain, France, Croatia, Lithuania, Portugal and Sweden. There were also 4 regions in Italy, 2 regions in Germany (NUTS level 1), the capital region of Poland, as well as a single region in Austria where the policy target of 96.0% had already been achieved. At the very top end of the distribution, there were 18 regions in the EU where practically every child (100.0%) between the age of 3 years and the age for starting compulsory primary education participated in early childhood education (as shown by the darkest shade of teal). Half of this group of 18 regions was concentrated in France (9 regions), with a further 5 regions located in neighbouring Belgium.

In Map 1, the regions with participation rates below the strategic target of 96.0% are shaded using 4 different golden tones. In 2022, the share of young children participating in early childhood education was less than 75.0% in 13 out of the 209 EU regions for which data are available. These regions with relatively low participation rates (as shown by the 2nd darkest shade of gold) were concentrated in Greece (8 regions; 2019 data) and Romania (3 regions), but also included Východné Slovensko in Slovakia and Åland in Finland. The lowest rate was recorded in the Greek region of Voreio Aigaio (55.0%; 2019 data). The only regions in Europe to report that fewer than 50.0% of young children were participating in early childhood education (as shown by the darkest shade of gold) were located in non-EU countries, namely, Switzerland and Türkiye.

Map 1: Participation rates in early childhood education, 2022
(%, by NUTS 2 regions)
Source: Eurostat (educ_uoe_enra22)

Participation in tertiary education

The number of people enrolling in tertiary education across the EU has risen in recent decades, reflecting several factors, such as

• demographic patterns
• changes in labour force participation (particularly for women)
• increased demand from employers for tertiary education qualifications (for jobs that previously required a secondary level of education)
• an increased awareness of the benefits of tertiary education
• access to student finance, scholarships and other benefits
• different patterns of learning mobility (within and from outside of the EU)
• an increased demand for longer tertiary education (such as the extension from a bachelor’s degree to master’s or doctoral (PhD) studies)
• an increasing share of adults participating in lifelong learning.

There were approximately 18.8 million students enrolled in the EU’s tertiary education institutions in 2022. As such, tertiary students accounted for 1 in 5 (20.0%) of the total number of pupils and students enrolled within the EU’s education system. A majority of the students enrolled in the tertiary education sector were female (54.6% of the total).

In 2022, there were 11.2 million EU students enrolled in bachelor’s programmes. This figure was approximately twice as high as the count of students enrolled in master’s programmes (5.5 million). The other 2 types of tertiary programmes had fewer students: 1.4 million were enrolled in short-cycle programmes (either academic or vocational) and 0.7 million in doctoral programmes. As noted above, females accounted for a majority of the students enrolled within tertiary education: this gender gap was particularly apparent among students studying for a master’s degree (58.1% were female) and somewhat smaller among those studying for a bachelor’s degree (53.9% were female). By contrast, males accounted for a small majority of the students studying for a short-cycle tertiary education qualification (50.8%) and for a doctoral degree (51.0%).

Unsurprisingly, the highest numbers of tertiary students were recorded in urban regions from some of the most populous EU countries. The German region of Nordrhein-Westfalen (821 000) and the French capital region of Ile-de-France (764 000) were the only regions within the EU to record more than 0.5 million tertiary students enrolled in 2022. After Nordrhein-Westfalen and Ile-de-France, there were 12 regions where the number of tertiary students enrolled was situated within the range of 250 000–500 000

• 3 regions from Germany – Bayern, Baden-Württemberg and Hessen (all NUTS level 1)
• 3 regions from Spain – Comunidad de Madrid, Cataluña and Andalucía
• 3 regions from Italy – Lombardia, Lazio and Campania
• the capital regions of Attiki in Greece and Warszawski stołeczny in Poland
• the French region of Rhône-Alpes.

Figure 1 shows the proportion of all tertiary students who were enrolled to study for a short-cycle, bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degree. Each national education system has its own specific characteristics, with an education offer with its own balance of particular fields or levels of education. This may explain why some regions have no students enrolled to study for a short-cycle tertiary education qualification, or for a master’s or doctoral (PhD) degree, as these educational levels aren’t offered; in such cases, the shares of students enrolled to study other types of tertiary education may be higher than elsewhere. For example, in the Finnish region of Åland, a bachelor’s degree was the only form of tertiary education available and therefore accounted for 100.0% of students enrolled within tertiary education.

In 2022, the share of tertiary students in the EU who were enrolled to study for a bachelor’s education was 59.2% (32.0% were female bachelor’s students and 27.2% were male bachelor’s students). Among NUTS level 2 regions, the highest share (100.0%) was recorded – as noted above – in the Finnish region of Åland. There were 5 other regions where more than 9 out of every 10 tertiary students followed a bachelor’s education: the southern Belgian region of Prov. Luxembourg and 4 Greek regions, namely, Sterea Elláda, Dytiki Makedonia, Ipeiros and Kriti. The biggest numbers of tertiary students studying for a bachelor’s degree were concentrated in Nordrhein-Westfalen (506 000), Ile-de-France (318 000) and the Spanish capital region of Comunidad de Madrid (255 000).

A 29.5% share of all tertiary students in the EU were enrolled to study for a master’s education in 2022 (17.1% were female master’s students and 12.4% were male master’s students). The highest numbers of students studying for a master’s degree were recorded in Ile-de-France (312 000; just 6 000 fewer than were studying for a bachelor’s degree in the French capital region) and in 2 German regions – Nordrhein-Westfalen (275 000) and Bayern (172 000). Burgenland in eastern Austria (53.5%) and La Rioja in northern Spain (50.3%) were the only NUTS level 2 regions to report that a majority of their tertiary students were enrolled to study for a master’s education.

In 2022, 7.6% of all tertiary students in the EU were enrolled to study for a short-cycle tertiary education qualification (3.9% were male short-cycle students and 3.7% were female short-cycle students). The westernmost Austrian region of Vorarlberg was the only NUTS level 2 region to report that more than half of all its tertiary students were enrolled to follow a short-cycle tertiary education course, with a 56.5% share. There were also relatively high shares of tertiary students following short-cycle courses in several (other) regions of Austria and in several regions of France and Spain.

Doctoral or equivalent students accounted for a 3.7% share of the EU’s tertiary students in 2022 (1.9% were male doctoral students and 1.8% were female doctoral students). Across EU regions, Luxembourg (13.3%) and the eastern German region of Sachsen (10.3%) were the only regions to report that more than 1 in 10 tertiary students were following a doctoral education. The next highest shares were recorded for the Finnish capital region of Helsinki-Uusimaa (8.3%), 2 more German regions – Saarland (8.1%) and ) Baden-Württemberg (7.9%) – and the Czech capital region of Praha (7.7%). The highest numbers of students studying for a doctoral degree were recorded in 3 German regions: Nordrhein-Westfalen (40 000), Baden-Württemberg (32 000) and Bayern (32 000).

Figure 1: Students enrolled in tertiary education, 2022
(% of people aged 20–24, by NUTS 2 regions)
Source: Eurostat (educ_uoe_enrt06)

Educational attainment

A basic level of education is desirable for all, as it provides the opportunity to participate in economic and social life. Nevertheless, people with higher levels of educational attainment generally tend to experience a wider range of job opportunities, higher levels of income and tend to be more satisfied with life, while they usually have a lower likelihood of being unemployed.

More about the data: educational attainment

Educational attainment is measured by looking at the highest level of education (based on the ISCED classification) that an individual has successfully completed. These statistics pertain to the highest level of attainment reached at the moment of the survey interview

• some people in the target age range might still be studying
• some people in the target age range might have completed their highest level of education in a different region from the 1 where they live at the time of the survey.

People with at least an intermediate level of education

In 2023, 84.1% of the EU population aged 20–24 reported having at least an intermediate level of educational attainment (in other words, they had at least an upper secondary level of educational attainment as defined by ISCED levels 3–8). The last couple of decades have seen an expansion in the share of people within the EU with at least an intermediate level of educational attainment. This upward development has been evident since the start of the time series in 2002, when the share was 76.8%. This development for the EU as a whole was interrupted only in 2009 (when there was no change) and 2022 (when there was a marked decline in Germany).

The strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training towards the European Education Area and beyond (2021–30) includes a complementary indicator for measuring progress in relation to educational attainment: it is defined as the share of people aged 20–24 with at least an intermediate (or upper secondary) level of educational attainment. The target is for the share of young people meeting this criterion to be at least 90% by 2030.

Map 2 presents information for the share of people aged 20–24 with at least an intermediate level of education. In 2023, approximately 30% of EU regions – 71 out of 240 NUTS level 2 regions for which data are available – had already reached the EU’s target of 90.0%; they are shaded using 3 different shades of teal. These 71 regions already at or above the target made up a large proportion of the regions in (northern) Belgium, Czechia, Ireland, Greece, Croatia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia. There were also multiple regions in France, Italy, Hungary and Sweden, as well as single regions from each of Bulgaria, Spain, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal and Romania, where upwards of 90.0% of people aged 20–24 had at least an intermediate level of education.

At the top end of the distribution, there were 20 NUTS level 2 regions where the share of people aged 20–24 with at least an intermediate level of educational attainment was 95.0% or higher in 2023. This group was concentrated in Ireland (2 out of 3 regions), Greece (7 out of 13 regions), Croatia (all 4 regions) and Poland (5 out of 17 regions). The other 2 regions with such high shares were the capital regions of Lithuania and Romania. The highest share of young people aged 20–24 having attained at least an intermediate level of educational attainment was recorded in the Croatian coastal region of Jadranska Hrvatska (99.6%).

At the other end of the range, there were 19 NUTS level 2 regions where less than 70.0% of all young people aged 20–24 had attained at least an intermediate level of education in 2023 (as shown by the darkest shade of gold in Map 2). These regions were primarily located in Germany (14 regions), while there were also relatively low levels of (at least) intermediate educational attainment in 2 outermost/autonomous regions of the EU – Guyane in France and Região Autónoma dos Açores in Portugal – as well as Sjælland in Denmark and Ciudad de Ceuta and Ciudad de Melilla in Spain. The lowest share of young people aged 20–24 having attained at least an intermediate level of educational attainment was recorded in the north-western German region of Weser-Ems (59.2%); it was the only region in the EU to report that fewer than 60.0% of young people had at least an intermediate level of educational attainment.

Map 2: People with at least an upper secondary education, 2023
(% of people aged 20–24, by NUTS 2 regions)
Source: Eurostat (edat_lfse_04)

People with a tertiary level of educational attainment

Map 3 shows the regional distribution of tertiary (or higher) educational attainment in 2023. It is based on attainment levels for people aged 25–34 years, by when the vast majority of the population have completed their education. Within the strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training towards the European Education Area and beyond (2021–30), the EU has a target that, by 2030, the share of people aged 25–34 with a tertiary educational attainment should be at least 45%.

By 2023, 1 in 3 EU regions had reached the policy goal for tertiary educational attainment

In 2023, 43.1% of the EU population aged 25–34 had a tertiary level of educational attainment; some people within this age group might still be studying. Of the 240 NUTS level 2 regions for which data are available, 80 had already reached or surpassed the EU’s policy target of 45.0% (as shown by 3 shades of teal in Map 3).

At the top end of the distribution, there were 17 regions where at least 60.0% of young people aged 25–34 had a tertiary level of educational attainment in 2023. Many of these regions appear to act as a magnet for highly-qualified people, exerting considerable ‘pull effects’ through the varied educational, employment and social/lifestyle opportunities that they offer. This group included the capital regions of Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Ireland, Spain, France, Lithuania, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden; it also included Cyprus and Luxembourg. The remaining 4 regions with high shares were specialised in research and innovation activities and/or high-technology manufacturing

• Prov. Brabant Wallon in Belgium
• the northern Spanish regions of País Vasco and Cantabria
• Utrecht in the Netherlands.

In 2023, there were 4 NUTS level 2 regions across the EU where more than 2 out of 3 people aged 25–34 had attained a tertiary level of educational attainment. These included the French capital region of Ile-de-France (67.2%), the Polish capital region of Warszawski stołeczny (67.5%), and the Spanish region of País Vasco (67.6%). However, the Lithuanian capital region of Sostinės regionas had the highest share, with 72.3% of this age group having a tertiary level of educational attainment.

At the bottom end of the distribution, there were 20 NUTS level 2 regions where fewer than 25% of all people aged 25–34 had a tertiary level of educational attainment in 2023 (as shown by the darkest shade of gold). Many of these regions were characterised as rural/isolated regions that had relatively large agricultural sectors, with a low level of highly-skilled employment opportunities. Others were characterised by their relatively high specialisation in vocational educational programmes, with students moving into the labour market through apprenticeships and training schemes rather than as a result of obtaining tertiary level qualifications. This group of 20 regions was concentrated in eastern and southern EU countries and was composed of

• 7 out of the 8 regions in Romania (the exception being the capital region of Bucureşti-Ilfov)
• 6 out of the 8 regions in Hungary (the 2 exceptions being the capital region of Budapest and its surrounding region of Pest)
• a single region from each of Bulgaria and Czechia
• 3 regions from Italy
• single regions from each of Greece and Portugal.

In 2023, the lowest regional levels of tertiary educational attainment among people aged 25–34 were recorded in the Hungarian region of Észak-Magyarország (16.3%) and the Romanian regions of Sud-Est (16.5%) and Sud-Muntenia (14.7%).

Map 3: Tertiary educational attainment, 2023
(% of people aged 25–34, by NUTS 2 regions)
Source: Eurostat (edat_lfse_04)

Transition from education to work

The penultimate section in this chapter provides information on the situation of young people as they aim to transition from education into work. When students complete their studies there may be several barriers that restrict their progression into the labour market, for example, a lack of relevant work experience, a lack of skills, a lack of job opportunities in the region where they reside, or high levels of unemployment during an economic downturn.

Early leavers from education and training

Within the EU, education policy seeks to ensure that all people in the EU (irrespective of age) have the skills, knowledge and capabilities to develop their careers. The transition from education into work may prove particularly difficult for people with low levels of literacy and numeracy, those who leave education at an early age, and people coming from disadvantaged backgrounds. A particular area of concern is the proportion of early leavers from education and training. These are individuals aged 18–24 who have at most a lower secondary level of educational attainment (ISCED levels 0–2) and who weren’t engaged in any further education and training (during the 4 weeks preceding the labour force survey). This indicator is one of 7 key targets outlined in the strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training towards the European Education Area and beyond (2021–30); the EU has set a goal to reduce the proportion of early leavers to less than 9% by 2030.

Over the last 2 decades, the share of early leavers from education and training declined across the EU. From a peak of 16.9% in 2002 (the start of the time series), this share fell each and every year through to 10.5% by 2017. Having remained unchanged in 2018, there were further falls in the following 5 years. By 2023, the share of young people in the EU who had at most a lower secondary level of educational attainment and who weren’t engaged in any further education and training was 9.5%; as such, it stood 0.5 percentage points higher than the policy target set for 2030.

Across the EU, the share of early leavers from education and training was higher in 2023 among young men (11.3%) than among young women (7.7%)

There is both a spatial and a gender dimension to the issue of early leavers from education and training.

• The proportion of early leavers tends to be higher in rural and sparsely-populated regions of the EU, as well as in regions characterised as former industrial heartlands. Among other reasons, this pattern may be a reflection of fewer educational opportunities and weak local labour markets, which may discourage people from staying longer in education and also act as a ‘push factor’ to encourage people with higher levels of educational attainment to move away.
• For the gender dimension, a higher proportion of young men (compared with young women) tend to be early leavers. Across the EU in 2023, the share of early leavers from education and training was 11.3% among young men, which was 3.6 percentage points higher than the corresponding share among young women (7.7%). This gender gap had narrowed at quite a fast pace between 2020 and 2022, as the rate for young men decreased rapidly while the rate for young women experienced only a modest reduction. However, this development appears to have been short lived, as the latest information available shows the share of early leavers among young women falling 0.3 percentage points in 2023 while the rate for young men increased 0.1 points.

Already by 2023, more than 50% of EU regions had attained the EU’s policy target for early leavers

In 2023, the share of early leavers from education and training was already less than the 9.0% policy target in more than 50% (106 out of 204) of the NUTS level 2 regions for which data are available – as shown by 3 shades of teal in Map 4. These regions were widely dispersed across the EU. Looking in more detail, the share of early leavers from education and training was less than 9.0% for every region (for which data are available) of Belgium, Ireland, Croatia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Sweden; shares of less than 9.0% were recorded in Cyprus, Latvia and Luxembourg too.

At the other end of the range, there were 7 NUTS level 2 regions where the share of early leavers from education and training in 2023 was at least 20.0%; they are denoted by the darkest shade of gold in Map 4. This group included several sparsely populated, island and/or peripheral regions (it is likely that a disproportionately high share of students from island and/or peripheral regions have to leave home if they wish to follow a particular course or programme, leaving behind a higher concentration of early leavers). Outside of this group, relatively high shares of early leavers from education and training – upwards of 16.5% – were observed in at least 2 regions from each of Germany, Spain, Italy and Romania.

Map 4: Early leavers from education and training, 2023
(% of people aged 18–24, by NUTS 2 regions)
Source: Eurostat (edat_lfse_16)

Figure 2 highlights the NUTS level 2 regions with the highest and lowest regional shares of early leavers from education and training in 2023. At the top end of the distribution, the Romanian region of Sud-Est had the highest share, with 24.6% of its individuals aged 18–24 classified as early leavers. Shares of more than 20.0% were also recorded in the French regions of Guyane (21.7%) and Corse (21.5%), the Portuguese Região Autónoma dos Açores (21.7%), the Spanish autonomous regions of Ciudad de Ceuta (21.2%) and Ciudad de Melilla (20.4%), as well as an additional region from Romania – Centru (21.0%).

At the lower end of the distribution, there were 21 NUTS level 2 regions where the share of early leavers from education and training among people aged 18 to 24 was less than 5.0% in 2023. These regions were often grouped together, with clusters of regions with low shares in Ireland, south-west France, Belgium, Czechia, Croatia and Greece. The lowest shares of early leavers from education and training were recorded in

• the Czech capital region of Praha (1.7%)
• the Greek region of Kentriki Makedonia (1.3%)
• the Croatian coastal region of Jadranska Hrvatska (also 1.3%; 2022 data).

Figure 2: Early leavers from education and training, 2023
(% of people aged 18–24, by NUTS 2 regions)
Source: Eurostat (edat_lfse_16)

Employment rate of recent graduates from vocational programmes

A Council Recommendation on vocational education and training (VET) for sustainable competitiveness, social fairness and resilience (2020/C 417/01) set an EU benchmark for the employment rate of recent graduates from vocational programmes. The policy target – defined in relation to people aged 20–34 having completed an upper secondary or post-secondary non-tertiary vocational education qualification (as covered by ISCED levels 3 and 4) within the previous 1–3 years (hereafter referred to as recent graduates) – is for the employment rate of this cohort to be at least 82% by 2025.

Between 2015 and 2019, the EU employment rate of recent graduates from vocational education programmes in upper secondary or post-secondary non-tertiary education increased from 72.3% to 79.2%. However, it subsequently fell 3.4 percentage points in 2020 as the COVID-19 crisis likely impacted on the number of (new) job opportunities that were open to young people. There was a modest recovery in 2021, with the employment rate rising to 76.1%, with the recovery accelerating a year later, rising by a further 3.7 points to 79.8%. In 2023, the EU’s employment rate for recent vocational graduates continued to increase and reached a historic high of 81.0%; as such, it was 1.0 points below the 82.0% target for 2025.

Map 5 shows that the employment rate of recent vocational graduates was already at or above the EU’s policy target of 82.0% in approximately half (75 out of 153) of the EU regions for which data are available in 2023; the statistics presented for Belgium, Germany, Greece and France relate to NUTS level 1 regions, while only national data are available for Bulgaria and earlier reference years are used for some regions. These 75 regions with relatively high employment rates are shaded using 3 different teal tones in Map 5: they included every region (among those for which data are available) of Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands, as well as Malta and all but one of the regions in Belgium, Austria, Slovenia and Sweden. At the top end of the distribution, there were 10 regions in the EU where the employment rate of recent vocational graduates was at least 95.0% (as shown by the darkest shade of teal in Map 5). This group included

• the Czech capital region of Praha
• the German regions of Brandenburg and Rheinland-Pfalz
• Comunidad Foral de Navarra in Spain
• Malta
• the Dutch regions of Drenthe, Flevoland, Gelderland and Zeeland
• Övre Norrland in Sweden.

In 3 of these regions, practically all (100.0%) recent vocational graduates were in work in 2023: Praha in Czechia, Comunidad Foral de Navarra in Spain, and Flevoland in the Netherlands.

At the lower end of the distribution, there were 16 NUTS level 2 regions where fewer than 60.0% of all recent vocational graduates were in work in 2023 (as shown by the darkest 2 golden shades in Map 5). The lowest employment rates for this cohort were concentrated in southern EU countries: 8 (predominantly southern) regions of Italy, 4 regions in Spain and the Greek capital region of Attiki; the others included 2 regions from Romania and Régions Ultrapériphériques Françaises in France. Within this group of 16 regions, there were 9 which had employment rates of recent vocational graduates that were below 50.0% in 2023 and 4 regions where rates were below 40.0%. The lowest employment rates were observed in the Italian regions of Campania (38.1%), Basilicata (37.5%; 2021 data) and Sicilia (35.6%), as well as the French Régions Ultrapériphériques Françaises (21.2%).

Map 5: Employment rate of recent graduates from vocational programmes, 2023
(% of graduates aged 20 to 34 having left education and training 1 to 3 years earlier, by NUTS 2 regions)
Source: Eurostat (edat_lfse_33)

Adult education and training

Lifelong learning seeks to improve an individual’s knowledge, skills, competences and/or qualifications for personal, social and/or professional reasons. For many occupations, it is increasingly important for the labour force to develop existing skills and learn new ones that are relevant to a specific job or which provide opportunities for new career paths. Some jobs/occupations will likely cease to exist in the future as a result of technological change.

The strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training towards the European Education Area and beyond (2021–30) has a specific EU policy target in this area; by 2025, at least 47% of people aged 25–64 should have participated in adult learning during the previous 12 months. This target was revised in June 2021 as a result of its inclusion as one of the EU 2030 social targets within the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan; the revised goal is to have, by 2030, at least 60% of people aged 25–64 participating in education and training every year.

More about the data: adult participation in education and training

Up until 2021, the data collected by the labour force survey included information on the share of the population that received formal or non-formal education and training during the 4 weeks prior to the survey; this indicator is presented below .

As of reference year 2022, labour force survey statistics have been collected for people participating in education and training during the 12 months prior to the survey. However, at the time of writing (May 2024), this new dataset isn’t yet available with a regional breakdown. As such, the regional statistics presented below concern people aged 25–64 participating in education and training during the 4 weeks prior to the (labour force) survey.

During the last 2 decades, the proportion of adults (aged 25–64) in the EU participating in education and training has more than doubled. At the start of the time series in 2002, around 1 in 20 people participated in education and training during the 4 weeks prior to the (labour force) survey, with the participation rate standing at 5.3%. The rate increased gradually and by 2019 had reached 10.8%. However, following the onset of the COVID-19 crisis, it fell back to 9.1% in 2020, before subsequently rebounding to 10.8% in 2021. Thereafter, the EU’s adult participation rate for education and training continued to increase, growing at a relatively rapid pace, reaching 11.9% in 2022 and 12.7% in 2023.

The regional distribution of participation rates in education and training among people aged 25–64 was somewhat skewed insofar as almost 60% of NUTS level 2 regions – or 139 out of 241 regions – reported a rate in 2023 that was below the EU average (see Map 6). The lowest participation rates were concentrated in southern and eastern EU countries. By contrast, the highest participation rates were primarily located in a band of regions running from the Nordic EU countries, down through the Netherlands. Most of the other countries with regions also having participation rates already above the EU average were in a band continuing down through Belgium and Luxembourg into France and on to the Iberian Peninsula, while another group included several regions around Austria, parts of northern and central Italy, and Slovenia. Elsewhere, relatively high rates were recorded in many capital regions.

In 2023, the 8 highest levels of adult participation in education and training were all recorded in Sweden

Map 6 shows participation rates in education and training for people aged 25–64 for 2023. The regional distribution of adult participation rates was relatively homogeneous within individual EU countries, at least in part reflecting national rather than regional education and training initiatives. There were 20 NUTS level 2 regions that had participation rates that were equal to or above 25.0% (as shown by the darkest shade of blue); this group included every region of Denmark and Sweden, as well as 4 Dutch regions and 3 Finnish ones. The 8 highest regional participation rates in education and training were recorded in Sweden. The Swedish capital region of Stockholm had the highest participation rate, at 41.3%, followed by Västsverige, Sydsverige and Östra Mellansverige (all within the range of 38.0–38.9%). The Danish capital region of Hovedstaden had the highest participation rate outside of Sweden (35.2%). It was followed by the Finnish capital region of Helsinki-Uusimaa (29.2%), while Utrecht in the Netherlands (26.5%) had the highest participation rate outside of the Nordic countries.

There were 25 NUTS level 2 regions where the participation rate for adult education and training was below 5.0% in 2023 (they are indicated by the yellow shade in Map 6). This group was principally concentrated in south-eastern Europe: Bulgaria (all 6 regions) and Greece (11 out of 13 regions), but also included 4 regions from Poland, as well as 2 regions from each of Croatia and Romania. At the bottom end of the range, the lowest rates were recorded in the Bulgarian regions of Severoiztochen (1.1%), Severozapaden (1.0%) and Severen tsentralen (0.9%).

Map 6: Participation rate in education and training, 2023
(% of people aged 25–64, by NUTS 2 regions)
Source: Eurostat (trng_lfse_04)

Source data for figures and maps

Education at regional level

Data sources

As the structure of education systems varies from between EU countries, a framework for assembling, compiling and presenting regional, national and international education statistics is a prerequisite for the comparability of data – this is provided by the international standard classification of education (ISCED). ISCED 2011 was adopted by the UNESCO General Conference in November 2011 and is used as the basis for the statistics presented here.

Most EU education statistics are collected as part of a jointly administered exercise that involves the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UNESCO-UIS), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and Eurostat, referred to as the UOE data collection exercise. The UOE data collection exercise is based on administrative sources, with data compiled by education ministries or national statistical authorities. Reference periods are the calendar year for data on expenditure and the school/academic year (classified to the calendar year in which the school/academic year finishes) for all non-financial data.

Data for regional enrolments are collected separately by Eurostat. These statistics include information on the numbers of pupils/students enrolled by age, sex and ISCED level, at NUTS level 2. Their legal basis, from school year 2012/13 is Commission Regulation (EU) No 912/2013 concerning the production and development of statistics on education and lifelong learning, as regards statistics on education and training systems.

The EU’s labour force survey (LFS) provides regional education statistics about the population’s level of educational attainment, the number of early leavers from education and training, the employment rates of recent young graduates, as well as adult participation in education and training. It covers the population of individuals aged 15 years and more living in private households; information for each new reference year is made available in the spring of the following year.

LFS data up to 2013 are based on ISCED 1997, while data from 2014 onwards are based on ISCED 2011. Data are generally comparable over this time period, although there are breaks in series for Estonia and Austria due to level shifts resulting from the reclassification of programmes spanning different ISCED levels.

Indicator definitions

Participation in early childhood education

For the purpose of this publication, the participation rate in early childhood education is defined as the share of children aged between 3 years and the age when compulsory education at the primary level starts; more detailed information on the starting ages for compulsory education and for compulsory primary education is provided in this annex. The starting age of primary education is before the age of compulsory education in some countries, while in other countries compulsory education starts at the pre-primary level (in other words, it may be compulsory to attend early childhood programmes for a year or more before the start of primary education).

Students enrolled in upper secondary education

Students typically enter ISCED level 3, or upper secondary education, between the ages of 14 and 16; more detailed information is provided in the final worksheet of this annex. Programmes at this level are usually designed to i) complete general secondary education, possibly in preparation for tertiary education and/or ii) provide skills relevant for the labour market through vocational secondary education. The number of students enrolled in upper secondary education reflects, to some degree, the demographic structure of each EU country and also country-specific policies such as the length of compulsory education and the availability of further training outside of the education system and/or at the end of secondary education.

Vocational education programmes are designed for learners to acquire the knowledge, skills and competencies specific to a particular occupation or trade. Vocational education may have work-based components (for example, apprenticeships, dual-system education programmes). Successful completion of such programmes leads to labour market-relevant vocational qualifications acknowledged as occupationally-oriented by the relevant authorities and/or the labour market.

Students enrolled in tertiary education

Tertiary education is defined as ISCED levels 5–8. It builds on secondary education, providing learning activities in specialised fields of study. Tertiary education comprises short-cycle tertiary education (ISCED level 5), bachelor’s or equivalent (ISCED level 6), master’s or equivalent (ISCED level 7) and doctoral (PhD) or equivalent (ISCED level 8) education. For the first 3 of these, students generally need to have successfully completed an upper secondary programme, while those wishing to study for a doctorate generally need to have completed a master’s programme.

The number of students in tertiary education may reflect capacities and policies for the development of particular educational levels, but is also linked to qualification requirements, subject choice and/or job opportunities. As students grow older and education becomes more specialised, student mobility generally increases. As such, international flows of students may have a considerable impact on the share/number of students enrolled.

Educational attainment

Educational attainment is a term commonly used to refer to the highest level of education that an individual has successfully completed. The strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training towards the European Education Area and beyond (2021–30) introduced 2 targets.

• The share of early leavers from education and training (defined as people aged 18–24 with no more than a lower secondary education and no longer in education or training) should be less than 9% by 2030. This target is supplemented by a complementary indicator, namely, the share of people aged 20–24 with at least an upper secondary (or intermediate) level of educational attainment.
• The share of people aged 25–34 with a tertiary level of educational attainment should be at least 45% by 2030.

Early leavers from education and training

This indicator is derived from the EU labour force survey. It is defined as the share of the population aged 18–24 with no more than a lower secondary level of educational attainment who are no longer in education or training. The strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training towards the European Education Area and beyond (2021–30) introduced a target for the share of early leavers from education and training, whereby this should be less than 9% in the EU by 2030.

Employment rate of recent graduates from vocational programmes

This indicator concerns recent vocational graduates. These are people who i) have graduated with an upper secondary or post-secondary non-tertiary vocational education within the previous 1–3 years and ii) aren’t in any further (formal or non-formal) education or training (during the 4 weeks preceding the labour force survey). The employment rate is calculated as the share of recent vocational graduates who are in employment.

A Recommendation on vocational education and training (VET) for sustainable competitiveness, social fairness and resilience (2020/C 417/01) set a benchmark target to be achieved across the EU by 2025. The goal is to ensure that the employment rate of recent graduates aged 20–34 from vocational programmes should reach at least 82%.

Participation rates of adults aged 25–64 in education and training

The target population for adult learning statistics refers to people aged 25–64 years. These statistics concern adult participation in formal and non-formal education and training during the 4 weeks prior to the survey interview. Data are collected through the EU’s labour force survey. The denominator used for the ratio consists of the total population of the same age group, excluding those who didn’t answer the questions about participation in education and training.

Within the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan, one of the EU 2030 social targets concerns adult education and training. Its goal is for the share of adults aged 25–64 participating in education and training every year to reach at least 60% by 2030. The recall period should be during the previous 12 months, rather than the previous 4 weeks as used until recently in the labour force survey. However, regional data aren’t currently available for this longer recall period.

Context

Each of the EU countries is responsible for its own education and training policy. However, the EU supports national actions and helps address common education and training challenges through what is known as the open method of coordination. Indeed, the EU provides a policy forum for discussing topical issues (for example, ageing societies, the skills deficit, or global competition) and also provides EU countries with an opportunity to exchange best practices. Within this context, the European Commission has presented a wide range of initiatives for developing education and training in the EU, such as improving key competences (for example, literacy, language skills, digital skills and entrepreneurship); making better use of digital technology for teaching and learning; and developing mutual recognition of diplomas.

The EU is in the process of building a European Education Area, designed to provide quality education and training for all, strengthen educational outcomes and learning mobility, promote common values, and facilitate the mutual recognition of diplomas across borders. In her political guidelines for the European Commission, President von der Leyen underlined her commitment to make the European Education Area a reality by 2025: bringing down barriers to learning, improving access to education, enabling students to move more freely between education systems in different countries, enriching life chances by promoting lifelong learning, and encouraging investment in digital skills for both young people and adults alike.

In February 2021, a strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training towards the European Education Area and beyond (2021–30) (2021/C 66/01) was adopted. During the subsequent decade, the strategic framework will address 5 key priorities

• improving quality, equity, inclusion and success for all in education and training
• making lifelong learning and mobility a reality for all
• enhancing competences and motivation in the education profession
• reinforcing European higher education
• supporting the green and digital transitions through education and training.

As a means of monitoring progress, a series of reference levels (or benchmarks) for average EU performance in education and training have been agreed. These 7 EU-level targets should support monitoring strategic education and training priorities during the period 2021–30

• the share of low-achieving 15-year-olds in reading, mathematics and science should be less than 15%, by 2030
• the share of low-achieving students (in their 8th year of schooling) in computer and information literacy should be less than 15%, by 2030
• at least 96% of children between 3 years old and the starting age for compulsory primary education should participate in early childhood education and care by 2030
• the share of early leavers aged 18–24 from education and training should be less than 9% by 2030
• the share of adults aged 25–34 with a tertiary level of educational attainment should be at least 45% by 2030
• the share of recent graduates from vocational education and training benefiting from exposure to work-based learning during their studies should be at least 60% by 2025
• at least 47% of adults aged 25–64 should have participated in learning during the previous 12 months by 2025; this target was subsequently extended as part of the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan, with the new target to have at least 60% of adults participating in education and training every year by 2030.

The Digital Education Action Plan (2021–27) – Resetting education and training for the digital age (COM(2020) 624 final) outlines the European Commission’s vision for high-quality, inclusive and accessible digital education across the EU. It is composed of 2 strategic priorities

• fostering the development of a high-performing digital education ecosystem
• enhancing digital skills and competences for the digital transformation.

The Erasmus programme was launched 35 years ago and has helped more than 10 million people to study, work or volunteer abroad. At the end of 2020, a political agreement was reached on the Erasmus+ programme for 2021–27. It aims to support education and training in the EU by offering mobility and cooperation opportunities for higher education, vocational education and training, school education, adult education, youth and sport. It has a budget of €26.2 billion and focuses on social inclusion, green and digital transitions, and promoting young people’s participation in democratic life.

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External links

Notes

• Education and training in the EU – facts and figures (online publication)

General link

• Education and training publications

Paper and PDF publications

• Eurostat regional yearbook – 2024 edition

News articles

• Early school leavers down to 10% in 2022
• Participation in lifelong learning increases in 2021

Online publications

• Regions in Europe – 2024 interactive edition
• Rural Europe – online publication
• Urban Europe – online publication

• Regional statistics (t_reg), see

Regional education statistics (t_reg_educ)

• Education and training (t_educ), see

Participation in education and training (t_educ_part)

Education and training outcomes (t_educ_outc)

• Regional statistics by NUTS classification (reg), see

Regional education statistics (reg_educ)

Regional education statistics – ISCED 2011 (reg_educ_11)

• Education and training (educ), see

Participation in education and training (educ_part)

Pupils and students – enrolments (educ_uoe_enr)

Early childhood education and primary education (educ_uoe_enrp)

Lower secondary, upper secondary and post-secondary non-tertiary education (educ_uoe_enrs)

Tertiary education (educ_uoe_enrt)

All education levels (educ_uoe_enra)

Education and training outcomes (educ_outc)

Educational attainment level (edat)

Population by educational attainment level (edat1)

Labour status by educational attainment level (edat2)

Transition from education to work (edatt)

Early leavers from education and training (edatt1)

Labour status of young people by years since completion of highest level of education (edatt2)

• Education and training
• Regions and cities

• Eurostat statistical atlas (Chapter 3)
• Regional statistics illustrated

Manuals and further methodological information

• Dedicated section on education and training: methodology
• EU’s labour force survey (LFS)
• EU labour force survey – new methodology from 2021 onwards
• Methodological manual on territorial typologies
• Statistical regions in the European Union and partner countries: NUTS and statistical regions 2021 – 2022 edition

Metadata

• Regional education statistics (ESMS metadata file – reg_educ_esms)
• Participation in education and training (based on EU-LFS) (ESMS metadata file – trng_lfs_4w_esms)
• Educational attainment level and transition from education to work (based on EU-LFS) (ESMS metadata file – edat1_esms)

• Council Resolution on a strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training towards the European Education Area and beyond (2021–30)
• European Commission – EACEA – Eurydice – Description of national education systems
• European Commission – Education and Training – Digital education action plan (2021–27)
• European Commission – Education and Training – European education area
• European Commission – Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion – European skills agenda
• European Commission – European Vocational Skills Week
• European Commission – European Year of Skills
• European Commission – Regional Policy – Education and training
• International standard classification of education (ISCED 2011)
• UNESCO-UIS website

This article forms part of Eurostat’s annual flagship publication, the Eurostat regional yearbook.

Maps can be explored interactively using Eurostat’s Statistical Atlas.