Young foreigners in the EU are more likely to pursue higher education
Kateryna Hliznitsova, Unsplash
The number of young foreigners in the European Union with tertiary education continues to grow steadily, according to fresh Eurostat data. Over the decade (from 2014 to 2024), the proportion of non-EU nationals aged 25 to 34 who have completed tertiary education rose from 24.2% to 36.7% - an increase of 12.5 percentage points. This is particularly notable against the background of a 7.4 percentage point increase among citizens of other EU countries (to 41.1%) and an 8.3 percentage point increase among citizens of countries of residence (to 45.1%).
In the context of the European Education Strategy, which aims to achieve 45% of university graduates among young people by 2030, this dynamic looks very encouraging. Especially considering that we are talking about a socially and culturally vulnerable group.
The gender distribution adds interesting details. Women from home countries (EU citizens) show the highest rates with 51.2% having a university degree. They are followed by women from other EU countries (45.9%) and non-EU countries (40.5%).
Interestingly, even women from third countries are on average more educated than male citizens of their countries of residence: 40.5% versus 39.3%. Men from other EU countries scored 36.2% and men from outside the EU only 33%.
The gap between men and women persists in all categories. It reaches 11.9 p.p. among EU citizens, 9.7 p.p. among non-EU citizens and 7.5 p.p. among non-EU citizens. Although the difference is narrowing, it still underlines the need for gender-sensitive education and integration policies.
The growing level of education among young foreigners can be seen as a positive indicator of EU integration policy. It also reflects the increasing availability of higher education and probably the increased motivation of migrants for professional fulfilment. However, the persisting gender gap and differences between national and foreign citizens emphasise that structural barriers still exist - and require attention from education and migration policies.
