How does New Zealand's education system compare? OECD's Education at a Glance 2010

4. How educated are we?

One in four NZ adults aged 25 to 64 hold a degree or higher, and New Zealand is ranked 8th in the OECD in this measure. New Zealand is ranked 4th= highest (at 15%) in terms of those who hold a diploma as their highest qualification, and second equal (at 11%) in terms of those who hold a level 4 certificate as their highest qualification. At degree level we sit behind the United States, and on a par with Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom. In terms of vocational attainment New Zealand sits second only to Canada, on a par with Ireland and significantly ahead of Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom. When diplomas and degrees are considered together, New Zealand ranks second in terms of the percentage of its adult population with a tertiary qualification.

Figure 6:  Population with Level 4 and above attainment (2008) – sorted by highest degree attainment

See source Table A1.1a in EAG 2010 for full notes.

At the other end of the scale, 28% of New Zealand adults have not attained an upper secondary qualification, about the same rate as the OECD average, on a par with Australia and the United Kingdom (both at 30%), but significantly below Canada (13%) and the United States (11%). This pattern of rankings is similar for both men and women.

Comparisons are compromised to some extent by the treatment of one-year upper secondary level qualifications, which are common in New Zealand, but relatively uncommon in other OECD countries. In New Zealand's case, this covers NCEA level 1, school certificate and equivalent qualifications, and comprises 7% of the population. By OECD definitions, these are not considered as upper secondary attainment, and are not included in the figures for NZ upper secondary attainment. Although less common, some countries, such as Australia and the United States, include this group with upper secondary. In terms of degree attainment, New Zealand's ranking is higher for recent graduates. Our level of attainment is 5th highest for those aged 25 to 34, and around 8th or 9th for older graduates. However, New Zealand has a much older profile for diploma holders, and attainment at this level is 2nd highest for 55 to 64 year-olds and 6th highest for 25 to 34 year-olds.