Which Country Leads the World in Number of College Graduates?

Which country leads the world in the number of college graduates? Russia is #1 with almost 54 percent of adults 25-64-years-old holding an advanced degree, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators 2012 study.

The OECD said the most educated countries tend to be those where spending on all levels of education are highest, although Russia spends just 4.9 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on education, compared with the U.S., which spends about 7.3 percent of GDP and was ranked fifth among the 34 countries studied. Japan, ranked #3, also spends a low 4.9 percent or about US$5,000 per student on education.

Countries with large numbers of college graduates, such as Japan, Canada and Finland, also are among the highest performing countries in literacy and math proficiency exams.

Those countries with high levels of college graduates also tend to have lower unemployment rates for young adults.

The United States still finished fifth in the college graduate race, despite a 1 percent drop in public spending on education between 2008 and 2010. During that period, public education expenditures rose on average 5 percent among all OECD countries.

Following closely behind Russia was our northern neighbor, Canada, with just over 51 percent of its 25+ adult population holding a college degree. Japan was tied with Israel for the #3 spot, with just over 46 percent. Japan also has one of the highest high school graduation rates in the world.

The U.S. was fifth at 42.5 percent, followed by South Korea at #6. South Korea’s just over 40 percent has translated into very low levels of unemployment for college graduates in the country: 2.6 percent.

Grouped closely, #7 the United Kingdom’s number of college graduates was 39.4, separated by just one-tenth of a percent from New Zealand and Finland, which tied for #8.

Rounding out the world’s leaders was Australia, with just over 38 percent of its adult population holding college diplomas.

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