EU countries by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34

Cyprus had the highest tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34 of 27 EU countries in 2016, at 56.2%. Romania had the lowest, at 24.8%. The median was 41% and the figure for the European Union (27) was 36.8%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

Highest56.2Cyprus

Lowest24.8Romania

Median4127 EU countries

European Union (27)36.8History

Map of EU countries, 2016

Under 33
33 to 39
39 to 43
43 to 45
45 and over

%, 2016. Source: Eurostat, Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_03). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2016

%. Source: Eurostat, Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_03). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

Rank	EU countries	2016 (%)	Change on 2015
1	Cyprus	56.2	+1.5 pts
2	Lithuania	54.9	+0.1 pts
3	Ireland	54.3	+0.3 pts
4	Luxembourg	51.5	+1.2 pts
5	Sweden	47.3	+0.8 pts
6	Netherlands	45.2	+0.1 pts
7	Denmark Series break	44.6	+1.6 pts
8	Belgium	44.3	+1.2 pts
9	France	44.2	-0.6 pts
10	Poland	43.5	+0.3 pts
11	Slovenia	43	+2.2 pts
12	Latvia	42.1	+2.2 pts
13	Greece	41	+0.9 pts
13	Spain	41	0 pts
15	Finland	40.7	+0.5 pts
16	Austria	39.7	+1.1 pts
17	Estonia	39.1	+0.6 pts
18	Portugal	34.9	+1.7 pts
19	Malta	34.3	+2.4 pts
20	Slovakia	33.4	+2.1 pts
21	Bulgaria	32.8	+1 pts
21	Croatia	32.8	+2 pts
23	Czechia	32.6	+1.6 pts
24	Germany	30.5	+0.9 pts
25	Hungary	30.4	-1.7 pts
26	Italy	25.6	+0.4 pts
27	Romania	24.8	-0.7 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

People aged 25 to 34 whose highest completed level of education is tertiary (ISCED 2011 levels 5 to 8: short-cycle tertiary, bachelor's or equivalent, master's or equivalent, and doctoral), as a percentage of all people aged 25 to 34 living in private households (EU Labour Force Survey).

The EU has set a target of at least 45% by 2030 for this age group. It shows recent graduates; for the whole adult population use tertiary_attainment_share_25_64. Not comparable with the US bachelors_degree_share, which excludes associate degrees and covers everyone aged 25 and over.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the EU countries are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Eurostat. Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_03). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_03/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

Eurostat, European Commission. (2026). Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_03) (EU countries by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_03/default/table

MLA 9

Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_03), EU countries by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016. Eurostat, European Commission, 10 Sept. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_03/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/eu-countries?period=2016. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_03). EU countries by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_03/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/eu-countries?period=2016.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_03), EU countries by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_03/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/eu-countries?period=2016 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_tertiary_2016,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat\_lfse\_03): EU countries by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_03/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/eu-countries?period=2016. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat\_lfse\_03). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat\_lfse\_03/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}

RIS

TY  - DATA
AU  - Eurostat, European Commission
TI  - Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_03): EU countries by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34, 2016
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/10
PB  - Eurostat, European Commission
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_03/default/table
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/eu-countries?period=2016
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/tertiary-education-attainment-25-34/eu-countries?period=2016.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_03). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_03/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -

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Rank EU countries by tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34 using official data, and cite the source.

rank_places {"indicator":"tertiary_attainment_share_25_34","level":"country","within":"European Union (27)","limit":10}
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Questions

Which EU country has the highest tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34?

Cyprus, with 56.2% in 2016, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which EU country has the lowest tertiary education attainment, ages 25 to 34?

Romania, with 24.8% in 2016.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, Population by educational attainment level, tertiary education (levels 5 to 8), 25 to 34 years (edat_lfse_03). Retrieved 2026-10-12.