1377.0 - Measures of a knowledge-based economy and society, Australia, 2003  
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Contents >> Human Capital Indicators >> Proportion of all persons aged 15-64 with a non-school qualification

CHARACTERISTIC: STOCK OF SKILLED PEOPLE

INDICATOR: Proportion of all persons aged 15-64 with a non-school qualification

The proportion of persons, aged 15-64 years, with a non-school qualification increased from 39% in 1994 to 51% in 2004. There has been a marked increase in the proportion of people aged 15-64 with a Bachelor degree or higher, from 12% in 1994 to 19% in 2004. The proportion of persons whose highest non-school qualification was an Advanced diploma or below has risen from 28% to 31% over the same period.



PROPORTION OF ALL PERSONS AGED 15-64 WITH A NON-SCHOOL QUALIFICATION(a)(b)
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2003
2004
Level of highest non-school qualification
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
Bachelor degree or above
11.5
12.8
14.3
15.7
17.8
18.1
18.9
Advanced diploma or below
27.5
29.4
27.6
28.1
29.8
30.2
31.3
Total with non-school qualifications (c)
Age Group (years)
15-24
21.8
23.2
22.1
22.4
25.1
25.7
25.9
25-34
46.6
50.1
51.6
54.0
59.1
60.4
63.2
35-44
48.4
52.2
50.7
52.0
56.4
57.5
58.9
45-54
42.8
46.2
45.6
48.9
54.0
54.5
57.1
55-64
33.6
37.1
36.1
38.6
44.2
45.6
47.9

Total(c)
39.0
42.3
41.9
43.8
48.2
49.1
50.9
(a) Non-school qualification refers to educational attainments other than those of pre-primary, primary or secondary education.
(b) Persons in a particular age group with a non-school qualification as a percentage of the total population in that age group.
(c) Includes persons whose highest non-school qualification was at a level not determined.
Break in series, 1997 computer assisted coding; 2001 ASCED.
Source: ABS Education and Work, Australia, (cat. no. 6227.0).


LEVEL OF HIGHEST NON-SCHOOL QUALIFICATION, BY SEX, PERSONS AGED 15-64 YEARS
graph: Level of highest non-school qualification, by sex, persons aged 15-64 years
Break in series, 1997 computer assisted coding; 2001 ASCED.
Source: ABS Survey of Education and Work.




STATISTICAL NOTES

Australian Standard Classification of Education
The Australian Standard Classification of Education (ASCED) (cat. no. 1272.0) is a national standard classification which can be applied to all sectors of the Australian education system including schools, vocational education and training and higher education.

Changes to the Survey of Education and Work
The ABS Survey of Education and Work, which is published in Education and Work, Australia (cat. no. 6227.0) was previously known as the Transition from Education to Work Survey. Data are collected in May of each year as a supplement to the ABS Labour Force Survey (LFS). Since 1994, there are two series breaks in the data collected on Level of Highest Non-school Qualification. Computer assisted coding was introduced in 1997; and in 2001, ASCED replaced the ABSCQ.

Please see the Explanatory Notes for ABS cat. no. 6227.0 for information regarding concepts, sources and methods, classifications and comparability issues of the time series.

Level of Highest Non-school Qualification
Non-school qualifications are awarded for educational attainments other than those of pre-primary, primary or secondary education. They include qualifications at the Postgraduate Degree level, Master Degree level, Graduate Diploma and Graduate Certificate level, Bachelor Degree level, Advanced Diploma and Diploma level, and Certificates I, II, III and IV levels. Non-school qualifications may be attained concurrently with school qualifications.

INTERNATIONAL COMPARISONS


SELECTED OECD COUNTRIES, EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT OF THE POPULATION, BY AGE (2002)
At least upper secondary education(a) by age group
At least tertiary education (tertiary-type A education, tertiary-type B education and advanced research programmes) by age group
25-64
%
25-34
%
35-44
%
45-54
%
55-64
%
25-64
%
25-34
%
35-44
%
45-54
%
55-64
%
Australia
61
73
62
58
46
31
36
32
30
23
Canada
83
89
86
82
69
43
51
43
41
32
Finland
75
88
85
71
52
33
40
38
30
23
Germany
83
85
86
84
77
23
21
26
25
21
Ireland
60
77
65
51
37
26
37
25
19
14
Japan
84
94
94
82
64
36
50
45
31
18
Korea
71
95
79
51
31
26
41
28
13
9
New Zealand
76
82
80
76
62
30
30
31
32
26
Sweden
82
91
87
79
67
33
39
34
31
26
United
Kingdom(b)
64
70
65
62
56
27
31
27
26
20
United States
of America
87
87
88
89
84
38
40
39
40
33
Country
mean
65
75
69
61
50
24
28
24
21
16

(a) Excluding ISCED 3C short programmes.
(b) Not all ISCED 3 programmes meet minimum requirements for long ISCED 3C programmes.
Source: OECD, Education at a glance: OECD indicators, 2004http://www.oecd.org/document/11/0,2340,en_2649_34515_33712011_1_1_1_1,00.html.



STATISTICAL NOTES

International Standard Classification of Education
The International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) was developed by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) to facilitate comparisons of education statistics and indicators within and between countries. It was originally endorsed at the General Conference of UNESCO in 1978. The current version (ISCED 1997) was officially adopted in November 1997.
The 1997 International Standard Classification of Education ( ISCED-97) introduced a mult-dimensional classification framework, allowing for the alignment of the educational content of programmes from different countries using multiple classification criteria. These dimensions include the type of subsequent education or destination to which the programme leads, the programme orientation (whether it be general or pre-vocational education, or vocational education) and the programme duration. For detailed notes see the OECD publication Classifying Educational Programmes, Manual for ISCED 97 Implementation in OECD countries, Edition 1999.

The ABS has designed ASCED to be as consistent with ISCED as possible. However, the needs of users and producers of statistics on education in Australia, and other factors unique to the Australian education system, have meant that total consistency has not been possible. Like ASCED, ISCED has separate dimensions of Level of Education and Field of Education. Correspondence tables providing comprehensive information on the relationship between ASCED and ISCED 1997 are available on the ABS web site; ABS Australian Standard Classification of Education (cat. no. 1272.0)

Notes on specific countries
United Kingdom attainment data at upper secondary level (ISCED 3) include a sizeable proportion of persons (about 7 per cent of the population) whose highest level of attainment will in general have been reached at age 16. Although the programmes which they have completed do not formally satisfy the duration criterion for the completion of ISCED level 3, they can lead to a qualification that the United Kingdom considers to be the same attainment level as that conferred by completion of a number of programmes which do satisfy the ISCED criterion.


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