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Level of education attained by the population aged 15 and over. By sex and level of education

Population aged 15 and over by level of education attained. By sex and level of education Catalonia. 2023
Value % over total Variation (%)
Men Women Total Men Women Total Men Women Total
Total 3,312,042 3,473,011 6,785,053 100.0 100.0 100.0 2.2 2.2 2.2
Primary education or lower 383,582 526,345 909,927 11.6 15.2 13.4 -1.3 -2.4 -1.9
First stage of secondary education and similar 991,644 871,998 1,863,642 29.9 25.1 27.5 0.8 0.4 0.6
Second stage of secondary education and similar 820,495 777,938 1,598,433 24.8 22.4 23.6 2.6 3.2 2.9
Higher education 1,116,321 1,296,730 2,413,051 33.7 37.3 35.6 4.3 4.9 4.6
Units: Persons.
Source: Idescat, based on the INE Annual Population Census.
Population aged 15 and over by level of education attained. By sex and level of education Spain. 2023
Value % over total Variation (%)
Men Women Total Men Women Total Men Women Total
Total 20,201,145 21,347,001 41,548,146 100.0 100.0 100.0 1.5 1.6 1.6
Primary education or lower 2,702,490 3,709,993 6,412,483 13.4 17.4 15.4 -1.6 -2.3 -2.0
First stage of secondary education and similar 6,557,896 5,819,492 12,377,388 32.5 27.3 29.8 0.3 0.2 0.3
Second stage of secondary education and similar 4,640,160 4,463,811 9,103,971 23.0 20.9 21.9 2.5 3.0 2.8
Higher education 6,300,599 7,353,705 13,654,304 31.2 34.4 32.9 3.5 4.1 3.8
Units: Persons.
Source: INE. Annual Population Census.

Last update: July 25, 2025.

Methodological note

Educational level refers to the highest level of study attained by an individual, regardless of whether they are currently studying within the date of reference. An individual is considered to have reached a certain level of instruction when he or she has finished and passed all of the years required for this level and thus has the necessary conditions for obtaining the corresponding qualification or diploma.

Level of education attained

Results are offered by the levels of education in the CCED-2020 (A), adapted and aggregated in 4 categories:

  • Primary education and lower (categories 01 to 03 of the CCED-2020 A, adapted)
  • Lower secondary education and similar (category 04 of the CCED-2020 A adapted)
  • Upper secondary education and similar (categories 05 to 07 of the CCED-2020 A, adapted)
  • Tertiary education (categories 08 to 12 of the CCED-2020 A, adapted)

The source of this information for the years 2001, 2011 and 2021 is the Population and Housing Census, which is carried out by the INE and, with annual frequency from 2021, provides the main demographic and social characteristics of the population.

For the years 2018 to 2020, the source of the information is the Education Attainment Statistics, carried out by Idescat.

For further information about these statistics, you may check the methodology.