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Percentage of Population of Select Countries with Bachelor's Degrees or Higher, by Age

Data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on educational attainment suggests that the US is lagging behind other countries. The figure shows the percentage of the population that has attained at least a bachelor’s degree by two age groups: 25-34 and 25-64. If a country’s educational level is increasing, those who are younger should show greater proportions with higher levels of education compared to the entire population. In this figure, the US and Germany show percentages that are roughly similar between the two age groups, whereas most other countries are showing larger percentages for the youngest age group. These data suggest that educational attainment has stagnated in the US compared to other countries.

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