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LEARN MORE ABOUT .id26.3% of people in Australia had a Bachelor or Higher degree qualification in 2021, higher than Greater Adelaide. This represents an increase of 2,195,423 people since 2011.
Educational Qualifications relate to education outside of primary and secondary school and are one of the most important indicators of socio-economic status. With other data sources, such as Employment Status, Income and Occupation, Australia's Educational Qualifications help to evaluate the economic opportunities and socio-economic status of the area and identify skill gaps in the labour market.
Q:
Derived from the Census question:
'What is the level of the highest qualification the person has completed?'
| Highest qualification achieved | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia - Persons aged 15+ (Usual residence) | 2021 | 2011 | Change | ||||
| Qualification level | Number | % | Greater Adelaide % | Number | % | Greater Adelaide % | 2011 to 2021 |
| Bachelor or Higher degree | 5,464,104 | 26.3 | 25.9 | 3,268,681 | 18.8 | 18.2 | +2,195,423 |
| Advanced Diploma or Diploma | 1,946,452 | 9.4 | 9.0 | 1,392,922 | 8.0 | 7.8 | +553,530 |
| Vocational | 3,961,900 | 19.1 | 19.7 | 3,134,578 | 18.1 | 18.1 | +827,322 |
| No qualification | 7,642,173 | 36.8 | 39.0 | 7,659,624 | 44.1 | 46.3 | -17,451 |
| Not stated | 1,766,208 | 8.5 | 6.3 | 1,905,355 | 11.0 | 9.6 | -139,147 |
| Total persons aged 15+ | 20,780,837 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 17,361,160 | 100.0 | 100.0 | +3,419,677 |
Dominant groups
Analysis of the qualifications of the population in Australia in 2021 compared to Greater Adelaide shows that there was a similar proportion of people holding formal qualifications (Bachelor or higher degree; Advanced Diploma or Diploma; or Vocational qualifications), and a lower proportion of people with no formal qualifications.
Overall, 54.7% of the population aged 15 and over held educational qualifications, and 36.8% had no qualifications, compared with 54.7% and 39.0% respectively for Greater Adelaide.
The major difference between the qualifications held by the population of Australia and Greater Adelaide is:
- A smaller percentage of persons with No qualifications (36.8% compared to 39.0%)
Emerging groups
The largest changes in the qualifications of the population in Australia between 2011 and 2021 were in those with:
- Bachelor or Higher degrees (+2,195,423 persons)
- Vocational qualifications (+827,322 persons)
- Advanced Diploma or Diplomas (+553,530 persons)
- No qualifications (-17,451 persons)
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