Highest qualification
Published:
29 October 2026
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Data on the highest qualification achieved by young people (25 to 29 year olds), by socio-economic background.
Summary main findings
There is a strong relationship between people's socio-economic background and the highest qualification they get by their mid to late 20s. These inequalities are bigger for higher degrees (such as master's degrees or PhDs) than for first degrees (such as Bachelor degrees).
Among 25 to 29 year olds in 2025:
- 26% of those from higher professional backgrounds had a higher degree, compared with 11% of those from lower working backgrounds
- 46% of those from higher professional backgrounds had a first degree, compared with 23% of those from lower working backgrounds
In the 3 years to 2025, an average of 53% of 25 to 29 year olds had a first or higher degree, up from 40% in the 3 years to 2016. Over this period, the gap between those from lower working class and higher professional backgrounds who had a higher degree went up from 18 to 20 percentage points. The gap in first degree attainment went down from 28 to 21 percentage points.
Sex
In the period from 2020 to 2025 combined, young women from every socio-economic background were more likely to have a first or higher degree than young men from the same socio-economic background. 23% of young men from lower working-class backgrounds had a degree – the lowest percentage out of all combinations of socio-economic background and sex. 77% of young women from higher professional backgrounds had a degree – the highest percentage.
For women from higher professional backgrounds, degree attainment went up from 71% (in 2014 to 2019 combined) to 77% (in 2020 to 2025 combined). In the same period, the percentage of young men from lower working backgrounds who had lower-level qualifications (Below CSE grade 1) went down from 26% to 18%.
Ethnicity
Out of all ethnic groups, White British young people from higher professional backgrounds were least likely to have a degree compared to those from the same socio-economic background. Young people from several ethnic minority groups had higher percentages with a degree than White young people from similar socio-economic backgrounds.
Disability
Young people with a disability from every socio-economic background were less likely to have a university degree and more likely to hold lower-level qualifications than non-disabled young people.
Across every socio-economic background, the percentage of disabled young people who had a degree went up between 2014 to 2019 (combined) and 2020 to 2025 (combined). The percentage also went up for non-disabled young people, and at a faster rate. This meant the disability gap in degree attainment for young people from higher professional backgrounds went up from 11 to 16 percentage points.
Area
The likelihood of having achieved a degree by the age of 25 to 29 was highest in London regions and Cheshire, and lowest in Lincolnshire and Southern and West Central Scotland.
By socio-economic background
Visualisation
Highest level of qualification achieved by 25 to 29 year olds, by socio-economic background (UK, 2025)
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Data
| Socio-economic background | Lower level (below CSE grade 1) (%) | O level, GCSE and equivalent (%) | A level and equivalent (%) | Further education below degree (%) | First degree (%) | Higher degree (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Higher professional | 2.8 | 5.6 | 16.2 | 3.5 | 46.0 | 25.9 |
| Lower professional | 3.3 | 8.7 | 21.2 | 6.7 | 38.3 | 21.7 |
| Intermediate | 9.9 | 12.0 | 21.5 | 5.5 | 30.7 | 20.4 |
| Higher working | 11.4 | 17.8 | 25.5 | 5.7 | 27.7 | 11.9 |
| Lower working | 17.4 | 17.2 | 23.5 | 7.5 | 23.2 | 11.3 |
Download
For the full download file, see Download the data.
Changes over time
Visualisation
Highest level of qualification achieved by 25 to 29 year olds, by socio-economic background (UK, 2016 to 2025, 3-year averages)
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Data
| Year | Lower working | Higher working | Intermediate | Lower professional | Higher professional | Total | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lower level (below CSE grade 1) (%) | O level, GCSE and equivalent (%) | A level and equivalent (%) | Further education below degree (%) | First degree (%) | Higher degree (%) | Lower level (below CSE grade 1) (%) | O level, GCSE and equivalent (%) | A level and equivalent (%) | Further education below degree (%) | First degree (%) | Higher degree (%) | Lower level (below CSE grade 1) (%) | O level, GCSE and equivalent (%) | A level and equivalent (%) | Further education below degree (%) | First degree (%) | Higher degree (%) | Lower level (below CSE grade 1) (%) | O level, GCSE and equivalent (%) | A level and equivalent (%) | Further education below degree (%) | First degree (%) | Higher degree (%) | Lower level (below CSE grade 1) (%) | O level, GCSE and equivalent (%) | A level and equivalent (%) | Further education below degree (%) | First degree (%) | Higher degree (%) | Lower level (below CSE grade 1) (%) | O level, GCSE and equivalent (%) | A level and equivalent (%) | Further education below degree (%) | First degree (%) | Higher degree (%) | |
| 2023 to 2025 | 14.8 | 21.5 | 24.3 | 7.5 | 24.5 | 7.1 | 9.4 | 17.6 | 24.4 | 8.1 | 25.7 | 14.7 | 7.7 | 12.5 | 23.3 | 6.4 | 33.0 | 16.9 | 4.5 | 7.2 | 18.6 | 6.6 | 40.9 | 22.2 | 3.3 | 5.8 | 14.7 | 3.5 | 45.9 | 26.8 | 7.7 | 12.4 | 20.9 | 6.3 | 34.7 | 17.9 |
| 2022 to 2024 | 15.1 | 23.1 | 24.6 | 7.0 | 24.2 | 5.7 | 9.1 | 17.6 | 23.9 | 8.6 | 26.0 | 14.8 | 7.0 | 12.7 | 23.9 | 7.2 | 33.4 | 15.5 | 5.1 | 7.7 | 17.9 | 5.9 | 40.7 | 22.9 | 3.3 | 5.4 | 13.9 | 4.0 | 48.2 | 25.3 | 7.7 | 12.8 | 20.7 | 6.4 | 35.2 | 17.2 |
| 2021 to 2023 | 18.2 | 21.3 | 25.2 | 6.7 | 22.9 | 5.5 | 9.4 | 15.0 | 26.7 | 8.5 | 27.4 | 12.9 | 8.0 | 11.8 | 25.5 | 7.0 | 32.1 | 15.3 | 4.3 | 8.3 | 19.2 | 5.9 | 38.9 | 23.4 | 3.0 | 4.1 | 14.9 | 4.2 | 48.1 | 25.7 | 8.3 | 11.7 | 22.0 | 6.4 | 34.5 | 17.1 |
| 2020 to 2022 | 18.4 | 18.3 | 30.0 | 5.6 | 20.6 | 7.1 | 10.4 | 14.4 | 28.4 | 8.0 | 29.1 | 9.7 | 7.9 | 9.9 | 25.5 | 7.5 | 34.2 | 14.9 | 3.7 | 8.9 | 21.3 | 5.2 | 40.2 | 20.6 | 2.9 | 4.5 | 15.5 | 5.5 | 47.2 | 24.4 | 8.1 | 10.8 | 23.7 | 6.3 | 35.1 | 16.0 |
| 2019 to 2021 | 19.8 | 17.0 | 31.1 | 6.1 | 18.9 | 7.1 | 10.6 | 14.1 | 31.1 | 7.5 | 28.1 | 8.7 | 9.4 | 9.0 | 27.5 | 7.7 | 33.5 | 12.6 | 3.9 | 8.2 | 21.2 | 6.9 | 40.8 | 18.9 | 3.1 | 4.7 | 17.1 | 5.6 | 43.9 | 25.6 | 9.0 | 10.3 | 25.3 | 6.8 | 33.7 | 15.0 |
| 2018 to 2020 | 20.7 | 17.5 | 31.2 | 6.7 | 17.4 | 6.3 | 13.1 | 14.9 | 32.3 | 7.1 | 25.7 | 6.7 | 10.6 | 10.8 | 27.9 | 8.1 | 30.3 | 12.2 | 4.6 | 7.8 | 22.8 | 7.5 | 39.8 | 17.5 | 2.7 | 5.4 | 17.5 | 6.3 | 43.6 | 24.5 | 10.0 | 11.1 | 26.2 | 7.2 | 31.8 | 13.7 |
| 2017 to 2019 | 23.0 | 18.1 | 30.4 | 6.9 | 15.9 | 5.5 | 14.0 | 14.2 | 34.0 | 7.2 | 24.4 | 6.0 | 11.4 | 12.0 | 29.8 | 7.4 | 28.3 | 10.8 | 5.0 | 8.3 | 23.0 | 8.2 | 38.0 | 17.4 | 2.5 | 5.7 | 18.5 | 6.3 | 42.6 | 24.3 | 11.2 | 11.6 | 27.2 | 7.2 | 29.8 | 12.7 |
| 2016 to 2018 | 23.4 | 17.4 | 31.3 | 6.5 | 16.4 | 4.8 | 14.8 | 14.1 | 33.8 | 7.2 | 24.1 | 5.8 | 12.2 | 12.7 | 28.8 | 6.8 | 28.9 | 10.6 | 5.3 | 8.9 | 23.8 | 7.4 | 37.8 | 16.6 | 3.0 | 6.2 | 18.1 | 6.9 | 42.2 | 23.6 | 11.9 | 12.0 | 27.4 | 7.0 | 29.6 | 12.0 |
| 2015 to 2017 | 23.0 | 18.1 | 30.7 | 6.9 | 16.3 | 4.7 | 14.4 | 14.7 | 33.1 | 7.3 | 23.7 | 6.8 | 12.3 | 12.8 | 27.6 | 6.8 | 30.3 | 10.1 | 5.3 | 9.1 | 23.0 | 7.2 | 38.3 | 17.1 | 3.6 | 6.4 | 17.9 | 6.1 | 42.2 | 23.8 | 12.1 | 12.4 | 26.8 | 6.9 | 29.7 | 12.0 |
| 2014 to 2016 | 23.5 | 18.1 | 30.7 | 7.0 | 16.2 | 4.3 | 14.4 | 16.7 | 32.9 | 7.1 | 22.6 | 6.2 | 13.4 | 13.6 | 27.2 | 6.8 | 29.2 | 9.8 | 6.3 | 9.0 | 23.7 | 7.8 | 38.1 | 15.2 | 4.4 | 6.0 | 17.2 | 6.0 | 44.3 | 22.0 | 12.9 | 13.0 | 26.8 | 7.0 | 29.3 | 10.9 |
Download
For the full download file, see Download the data.
By sex
Visualisation
Highest level of qualification achieved by 25 to 29 year olds, by socio-economic background and sex (UK, 2014 to 2019 combined, and 2020 to 2025 combined)
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Data
| Socio-economic background | Sex | Lower level (below CSE grade 1) | O level, GCSE and equivalent | A level and equivalent | Further education below degree | First degree | Higher degree | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 to 2019 (%) | 2020 to 2025 (%) | 2014 to 2025 (combined) (%) | 2014 to 2019 (%) | 2020 to 2025 (%) | 2014 to 2025 (combined) (%) | 2014 to 2019 (%) | 2020 to 2025 (%) | 2014 to 2025 (combined) (%) | 2014 to 2019 (%) | 2020 to 2025 (%) | 2014 to 2025 (combined) (%) | 2014 to 2019 (%) | 2020 to 2025 (%) | 2014 to 2025 (combined) (%) | 2014 to 2019 (%) | 2020 to 2025 (%) | 2014 to 2025 (combined) (%) | ||
| Higher professional | Men | 3.7 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 7.2 | 6.4 | 6.7 | 19.9 | 17.8 | 18.8 | 6.3 | 4.6 | 5.4 | 41.2 | 44.7 | 43.1 | 21.7 | 23.1 | 22.5 |
| Women | 3.1 | 2.8 | 3.0 | 4.4 | 3.8 | 4.1 | 15.8 | 12.2 | 13.9 | 6.1 | 4.5 | 5.2 | 45.6 | 48.6 | 47.2 | 25.0 | 28.1 | 26.6 | |
| Lower professional | Men | 6.6 | 5.4 | 6.0 | 9.2 | 9.8 | 9.5 | 26.3 | 22.2 | 24.2 | 8.2 | 7.0 | 7.5 | 34.5 | 36.7 | 35.6 | 15.2 | 19.0 | 17.2 |
| Women | 4.7 | 2.9 | 3.7 | 8.0 | 6.4 | 7.2 | 20.3 | 17.8 | 19.0 | 7.8 | 4.8 | 6.3 | 41.6 | 44.4 | 43.0 | 17.5 | 23.7 | 20.7 | |
| Intermediate | Men | 14.1 | 9.2 | 11.8 | 13.6 | 11.5 | 12.6 | 29.2 | 25.5 | 27.5 | 6.8 | 7.6 | 7.2 | 26.2 | 30.8 | 28.4 | 10.0 | 15.5 | 12.6 |
| Women | 10.7 | 6.4 | 8.6 | 12.0 | 11.0 | 11.5 | 27.9 | 23.3 | 25.6 | 7.4 | 6.3 | 6.9 | 31.4 | 36.4 | 33.9 | 10.7 | 16.5 | 13.5 | |
| Higher working | Men | 16.3 | 12.9 | 14.8 | 16.6 | 16.2 | 16.4 | 34.1 | 27.5 | 31.1 | 6.5 | 8.3 | 7.3 | 20.9 | 23.6 | 22.1 | 5.6 | 11.4 | 8.2 |
| Women | 12.2 | 6.7 | 9.8 | 14.3 | 15.7 | 14.9 | 32.9 | 25.4 | 29.6 | 7.8 | 7.8 | 7.8 | 26.1 | 31.5 | 28.5 | 6.7 | 12.9 | 9.4 | |
| Lower working | Men | 26.4 | 18.1 | 22.5 | 17.2 | 20.3 | 18.7 | 30.5 | 28.7 | 29.7 | 6.4 | 5.8 | 6.1 | 14.8 | 20.4 | 17.4 | 4.6 | 6.7 | 5.6 |
| Women | 20.3 | 15.1 | 17.9 | 19.0 | 19.6 | 19.3 | 30.8 | 25.5 | 28.4 | 7.6 | 7.3 | 7.5 | 17.2 | 24.9 | 20.7 | 5.2 | 7.6 | 6.3 | |
Download
For the full download file, see Download the data.
By ethnicity
Visualisation
Percentage of 25 to 29 year olds from lower working and higher professional backgrounds who got a university degree, by ethnicity (UK, 2014 to 2025 combined)
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Data
| Ethnicity | Lower working (%) | Higher professional (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Bangladeshi | 38.4 | 81.9 |
| Chinese | 62.4 | 92.3 |
| Indian | 49.5 | 87.7 |
| Pakistani | 29.9 | 75.5 |
| Black African | 35.0 | 79.6 |
| Black Caribbean | 18.9 | 62.8 |
| Mixed | 27.9 | 73.7 |
| White British | 19.1 | 63.1 |
| White other | 27.1 | 73.0 |
| Other | 32.7 | 77.8 |
Download
For the full download file, see Download the data.
By disability status
Visualisation
Highest level of qualification achieved by 25 to 29 year olds, by socio-economic background and disability status (UK, 2014 to 2019 combined, and 2020 to 2025 combined)
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Data
| Socio-economic background | Disability | Lower level (below CSE grade 1) (%) | O level, GCSE and equivalent (%) | A level and equivalent (%) | Further education below degree (%) | First degree (%) | Higher degree (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Higher professional | Yes | 6.3 | 8.5 | 20.1 | 8.1 | 37.1 | 19.8 |
| No | 3.1 | 5.5 | 17.7 | 6.0 | 44.0 | 23.7 | |
| Lower professional | Yes | 10.6 | 12.7 | 26.9 | 10.0 | 28.6 | 11.3 |
| No | 4.9 | 8.1 | 22.9 | 7.8 | 39.2 | 17.1 | |
| Intermediate | Yes | 16.4 | 15.8 | 31.9 | 8.2 | 18.6 | 9.2 |
| No | 11.8 | 12.4 | 28.2 | 7.0 | 30.2 | 10.5 | |
| Higher working | Yes | 23.5 | 18.9 | 35.5 | 4.7 | 14.5 | 2.9 |
| No | 12.8 | 14.9 | 33.2 | 7.5 | 24.9 | 6.6 | |
| Lower working | Yes | 31.2 | 21.9 | 28.0 | 6.2 | 10.3 | 2.4 |
| No | 21.5 | 17.2 | 31.3 | 7.2 | 17.4 | 5.5 |
| Socio-economic background | Disability | Lower level (below CSE grade 1) (%) | O level, GCSE and equivalent (%) | A level and equivalent (%) | Further education below degree (%) | First degree (%) | Higher degree (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Higher professional | Yes | 6.1 | 8.1 | 20.7 | 6.2 | 35.7 | 23.2 |
| No | 2.6 | 4.5 | 13.9 | 4.2 | 48.8 | 26.0 | |
| Lower professional | Yes | 7.8 | 13.3 | 21.4 | 5.0 | 32.5 | 19.9 |
| No | 3.3 | 6.9 | 19.7 | 6.1 | 42.4 | 21.7 | |
| Intermediate | Yes | 10.9 | 19.2 | 25.3 | 6.2 | 25.7 | 12.7 |
| No | 7.0 | 9.3 | 24.3 | 7.0 | 35.6 | 16.8 | |
| Higher working | Yes | 15.9 | 23.3 | 22.2 | 8.0 | 25.3 | 5.2 |
| No | 8.5 | 13.9 | 27.5 | 8.1 | 28.1 | 13.8 | |
| Lower working | Yes | 23.6 | 27.0 | 23.7 | 7.0 | 14.6 | 4.0 |
| No | 13.5 | 17.1 | 28.7 | 6.5 | 25.8 | 8.4 |
Download
For the full download file, see Download the data.
By area
Visualisation
Percentage point difference in the likelihood of having achieved a degree by the age of 25 to 29, compared to the national average (UK, 2018 to 2025 combined)
41 regions in the UK are ranked from the lowest to highest values. They are then divided into 5 equally-sized groups (‘quintiles’), from 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest).
The lines either side of the dots represent confidence intervals – the range of values that the 'true' value for each region is highly likely to be within. In many cases the confidence intervals overlap. This suggests differences between specific regions may not be statistically significant.
The regional estimates have a large margin of error – do not rank or compare specific regions. See the composite indices for more precise estimates and to understand overall regional patterns.
Data
| Region | Difference compared to average |
|---|---|
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 1.6 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 2.3 |
| Cheshire | 6.3 |
| Cornwall and Isles of Scilly | -0.0 |
| Cumbria | -1.9 |
| Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire | -3.6 |
| Devon | -1.1 |
| Dorset and Somerset | -1.5 |
| East Anglia | -3.5 |
| East Wales | -0.5 |
| East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire | -3.0 |
| Eastern Scotland | -2.4 |
| Essex | -0.6 |
| Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bath/Bristol area | -1.5 |
| Greater Manchester | -3.7 |
| Hampshire and Isle of Wight | -6.0 |
| Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire | 1.7 |
| Highlands and Islands | 0.4 |
| Inner London - East | 13.3 |
| Inner London - West | 11.4 |
| Kent | -1.8 |
| Lancashire | 0.6 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | -0.5 |
| Lincolnshire | -6.9 |
| Merseyside | -0.1 |
| North Eastern Scotland | -2.1 |
| North Yorkshire | 4.9 |
| Northern Ireland | -2.0 |
| Northumberland, and Tyne and Wear | -0.8 |
| Outer London - East and North East | 6.0 |
| Outer London - South | 0.5 |
| Outer London - West and North West | 11.0 |
| Shropshire and Staffordshire | 1.0 |
| South Yorkshire | -4.6 |
| Southern Scotland | -6.6 |
| Surrey, East and West Sussex | 0.2 |
| Tees Valley and Durham | 0.3 |
| West Central Scotland | -6.0 |
| West Midlands | -1.0 |
| West Wales and The Valleys | -0.8 |
| West Yorkshire | 1.0 |
Download
For the full download file, see Download the data.
About the data
Data source
Office for National Statistics, Labour Force Survey (LFS)
Time period
- 2025 (By socio-economic background)
- 2014 to 2025, 3-year averages (Changes over time)
- 2014 to 2019 combined, and 2020 to 2025 combined (By sex and disability status)
- 2014 to 2025 combined (By ethnicity)
- 2018 to 2025 combined (By area)
Geographic area
UK
What the data measures
The data shows the highest qualification achieved by young people aged 25 to 29 years in the UK, by socio-economic background.
Things you need to know
The statistics are from the Labour Force Survey (LFS). They reflect the raw percentages and counts within our data. A percentage point gap or directional change in these charts may not be statistically significant. This is because variations within a sample can often reflect natural sampling changes rather than a trend in the whole population.
People’s socio-economic background (SEB) is measured by the occupation of the main earner in their household when they were 14 years old.
Data is weighted using LFS person weights.
For changes over time, we use a 3-year moving average. The first data point covers 2014 to 2016, and the final data point covers 2023 to 2025. A formal test was conducted for differences in the SEB gap between 2014 and 2025. This was not significant.
Data is combined to get more accurate estimates. Data by sex and disability is combined into 2 six-year time periods to monitor change over time:
- 2014 to 2019
- 2020 to 2025
Due to a limited sample size, data by ethnicity is combined from 2014 to 2025.
For data by area, the areas are where respondents lived when they were 14 years old.
For data by ethnicity, the data shows whether young people had a university degree or not. This is because the number of people surveyed was too small to measure some qualification levels reliably. The percentages shown are those for men. Percentages are shown only for people from lower working-class and higher professional-class backgrounds.
For data by disability status, respondents were asked if they had a health condition or illness lasting 12 months or more, and if that condition reduced their ability to carry out day-to-day activities. This is consistent with the definition of disability in the Equality Act 2010.
Due to rounding, some totals may not add up to 100%.
Error bars on charts show 95% confidence intervals. Read more about confidence intervals.
Type of data
Survey data
Full report
Read more in State of the Nation 2026 on GOV.UK.
Download the data
Download full dataset (CSV, 188KB)
This file contains the following variables:
- Measure code
- Measure title
- Chart type
- Area code
- Area type
- Area name
- Primary split type
- Primary split value
- Secondary split type
- Secondary split value
- Tertiary split type
- Tertiary split value
- Time period
- Value
- Lower confidence interval
- Upper confidence interval
- Sample size
- Unit
- Value note
Page history
Publication release date:
29 October 2026