Share of graduates in science and technology in higher education compared internationally
In short
- The Netherlands have a relatively small number of graduates and doctorate holders in science and technology per 1000 people in the 20-29 age group (2021).
- Ireland has the largest number of graduates and doctorate holders in science and technology in this age group.
- The number of graduates and doctorate holders per 1000 people in the 20-29 age group has been increased over the last years.
| Country | Doctorate | Master | Short-cycle | Bachelor |
| IRL | 1 | 11,3 | 5,4 | 22,6 |
| FRA | 0,8 | 11,5 | 8,7 | 8,1 |
| UK | 1,7 | 6,9 | 3 | 14,6 |
| DNK | 1,1 | 10,1 | 2,9 | 11,9 |
| FIN | 1 | 8,5 | 0 | 16,1 |
| AUT | 1 | 6,4 | 9,1 | 8,5 |
| GER | 1,3 | 8,1 | 0,2 | 14,4 |
| ESP | 0,9 | 5,1 | 9,4 | 8,1 |
| PRT | 0,7 | 8 | 1,6 | 12,4 |
| EU-27 | 0,8 | 7,7 | 2,9 | 10,5 |
| CHE | 1,9 | 6,1 | 0 | 13,7 |
| GRC | 0,7 | 4,8 | : | 14,5 |
| SWE | 1,2 | 8,2 | 3,9 | 5,9 |
| ITA | 0,7 | 8,1 | 0,5 | 9 |
| NOR | 0,8 | 6,2 | 2,6 | 7,3 |
| BEL | 0,9 | 6,2 | 0,8 | 8,5 |
| NLD | 0,7 | 5,7 | 0,2 | 8,9 |
| LUX | 1,1 | 1,5 | 0,8 | 1,5 |
Analysis
The number of graduates and PhDs in science and technology per 1,000 inhabitants in the 20-29 age group is, as in 2020, the largest in Ireland: 40 in 1,000 graduates or PhDs in science or technology. The Netherlands increased slightly from 14 to 15 per 1,000 between 2020 and 2021, but is almost at the bottom of the list of reference countries. Only Luxembourg is lower. The total number consists of Short-cycle, Bachelor and Master graduates and PhD graduates. The Netherlands is also low on the list of reference countries per diploma type, where Short-cycle is taken together with Bachelor graduates. Even if we look at all 35 countries for which Eurostat has data, the Netherlands ranks low. Only Latvia, Bulgaria, Hungary, Slovakia, Turkey, Malta, Cyprus, North Macedonia and Luxembourg are below the Netherlands (2021).
When we look at the numbers divided between men and women, we see that in both cases the Netherlands is almost at the bottom of the list of reference countries. The share of Dutch graduates and PhDs in Science and Technology per 1,000 inhabitants in the age group 20-29 has increased over the years. In 2013, there were 2.9 Master's graduates per 1,000 inhabitants, in 2021 this share has grown to 5.7. The share of Bachelor graduates grew from 6.3 in 2013 to 8.9 in 2021 (Eurostat).
For an explanation of the used definitions and abbreviations we refer to the webpage Definitions for Science in Figures.