In the 2022/23 academic year, 30 percent of undergraduates obtaining their degree were awarded a degree with first-class honors, the highest possible grade for UK graduates. Almost half of all students achieved an upper second or 2.1, with 20 percent obtaining a lower second or 2.2, and just four percent of graduates obtained a third, the lowest possible pass grade. The share of UK students graduating with a first-class degree has increased significantly in this time period, while the share of students obtaining a 2.2 has fallen the most in the same time period. GCSE and A-Level grades also on the rise Higher grades for the UK's main qualification for high school students, the general certificate of secondary education (GCSE), have also increased recently. In 1988 for example, approximately 8.4 percent of GCSE entries received the highest grade, compared with 21.8 percent in 2024. This is also the case to a lesser-extent for advanced level GCSE results (A-Levels), with the share of entries being awarded an A or A* increasing from 17.8 percent in 2000 to 27.8 percent in 2024. There is no consensus on if these improvements are due to increased ability, or to grade inflation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, however, grades in the UK were a lot higher than in other years. This was due to teacher and tutor assessments being giving a higher weighting than normal, with exams being postponed or cancelled completely. The UK's top universities Britain's oldest and most famous universities, Cambridge and Oxford, remained the two highest-ranked universities in the UK in 2025, with the London School of Economics finishing third. According to the ranking, the University of St Andrews was the top university outside the south of England, with Durham University being the highest-ranked university in the north of England. The largest university in terms of enrolled students was the mainly remote focused Open University, which had over 140,000 students in 2022/23. Among universities that mainly taught on-campus, University College London had the most students enrolled, at almost 52,000.

In 2023/24 the share of female students achieving a first class degree in the United Kingdom was 30 percent, compared with 27 percent of male students.

In the 2022/23 academic year, there were ******* enrollments for courses involving business and management studies, making it the most popular subject group in that year. Subjects allied to medicine had ******* enrollments, making it the second-most popular course in that year.

United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Bachelor's or Equivalent: Population 25+ Years: Total: % Cumulative data was reported at 29.333 % in 2014. This records an increase from the previous number of 28.388 % for 2013. United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Bachelor's or Equivalent: Population 25+ Years: Total: % Cumulative data is updated yearly, averaging 28.860 % from Dec 2013 (Median) to 2014, with 2 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 29.333 % in 2014 and a record low of 28.388 % in 2013. United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Bachelor's or Equivalent: Population 25+ Years: Total: % Cumulative data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s UK – Table UK.World Bank: Education Statistics. The percentage of population ages 25 and over that attained or completed Bachelor's or equivalent.; ; UNESCO Institute for Statistics; ;

As of March 2025, 26 percent of internet users in the United Kingdom (UK) had a bachelor's or equivalent degree. Furthermore, 23 percent had secondary, and another 23 percent had further education. Approximately 14 percent of online users in the UK had a master's degree.

In 2023/24, there were approximately, 497,220 postgraduate qualifications obtained in the United Kingdom, the highest number of postgraduate qualifications awarded in an academic year during this time period.

This Statistical First Release (SFR) has been produced by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) in collaboration with Department for Education and Skills (DfES) statisticians. It provides details of student enrolments and qualifications obtained by higher education (HE) students at HE institutions (HEIs) in the United Kingdom (UK) for the academic year 2005/06.

Table 1 shows all student enrolments on HE courses by level of study, mode of study and domicile, 2001/02 to 2005/06.

Table 2 shows first year student enrolments on HE courses by level of study, mode of study and domicile, 2001/02 to 2005/06.

Table 3 shows student enrolments on HE courses by mode of study, level of study and subject area, 2002/03 to 2005/06.

Table 4 shows the qualifications obtained by students on HE courses at HEIs in the UK by mode of study, domicile, gender and level of qualification obtained, 2001/02 to 2005/06.

Table 5 shows the class of degree achieved by students obtaining first degree qualifications at HEIs in the UK by gender and mode of study, 2001/02 to 2005/06.

Table 6 shows the qualifications obtained by students on HE courses at HEIs in the UK by level of qualification obtained, gender and subject area, 2002/03 to 2005/06.

As of September 2024, social media users in the United Kingdom with a secondary level education made up 21 percent of users in the country. Overall, 22 percent of social media users had achieved further education, and 29 percent were of bachelor's degree education or equivalent.

This Statistical First Release (SFR) has been produced by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) in collaboration with statisticians from the UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG), the Scottish Government (SG) and the Department for Employment and Learning Northern Ireland (DEL(NI)). It has been released according to the arrangements approved by the UK Statistics Authority. It provides details of student enrolments and qualifications obtained by higher education (HE) students at HE institutions (HEIs) in the United Kingdom (UK) for the academic year 2009/10. Additionally for the first time this year the SFR includes information from the HESA Aggregate Offshore Record. This record captures students studying wholly outside the UK who are either registered with the reporting institution or who are studying for an award of the reporting institution.

Table 1 - All student enrolments on HE courses by level of study, mode of study and domicile 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 1a - All student enrolments on HE courses by location of institution, mode of study, domicile and level of study 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 2 - First year student enrolments on HE courses by level of study, mode of study and domicile 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 2a - First year student enrolments on HE courses by location of institution, mode of study, domicile and level of study 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 3 - Student enrolments on HE courses by mode of study, level of study and subject area 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 3a - Student enrolments on HE courses by location of institution, mode of study, level of study and subject area 2009/10.

Table 4 - UK domiciled, first year student enrolments on HE courses by domicile, location of institution, mode of study and level of study 2008/09 & 2009/10.

Table 5 - Qualifications obtained by students on HE courses at HEIs in the UK by mode of study, domicile, gender and level of qualification obtained 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 5a - Qualifications obtained by students on HE courses at HEIs in the UK by location of institution, mode of study, domicile, gender and level of qualification obtained 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 6 - Class of degree achieved by students obtaining first degree qualifications at HEIs in the UK by gender and mode of study 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 6a - Class of degree achieved by students obtaining first degree qualifications at HEIs in the UK by location of institution, gender and mode of study 2009/10.

Table 7 - Qualifications obtained by students on HE courses at HEIs in the UK by level of qualification obtained, gender and subject area 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 7a - Qualifications obtained by students on HE courses at HEIs in the UK by location of institution, level of qualification obtained, gender and subject area 2009/10.

Table 8 - Students studying wholly overseas by location, type of activity, level of provision and location of institution 2008/09 and 2009/10.

The employment rate for university graduates in England was 87.6 percent in 2024, compared with 68 percent for non-graduates. People with postgraduate degrees had an even higher employment rate than those with an undergraduate degree, at 90 percent.

This is an excel spreadsheet containing all the tables used in the Graduates in the Labour Market Report. Including: headline figures, unemployment and inactivity rates back to 1992, information on male and female graduates and information on outcomes for graduates with undergraduate degrees.

This observational study sought to document the statistical content taught to undergraduate psychology students in the UK. We searched for module syllabi from psychology undergraduate programmes in the UK and assessed whether the module syllabi mentioned each of 32 quantitative and statistical topics.

This Statistical First Release (SFR) has been produced by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), in collaboration with statisticians from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG), the Scottish Government (SG) and the Department for Employment and Learning Northern Ireland (DEL(NI)). It has been released according to the arrangements approved by the UK Statistics Authority. It provides details of the destinations of leavers from higher education (HE) who obtained qualifications in higher education institutions (HEIs) in the United Kingdom (UK), during the academic year 2008/09. The data presented draws on the 2008/09 Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) record.

Table 1 shows the Destinations of full-time UK and Other EU domiciled leavers obtaining HE qualifications by level of qualification obtained and gender, 2008/09, 2007/08 and 2006/07.

Table 1a shows the Destinations of full-time UK and Other EU domiciled leavers obtaining HE qualifications by location of institution and level of qualification obtained, 2008/09, 2007/08 and 2006/07.

Table 2 shows the Destinations of part-time UK and Other EU domiciled leavers obtaining HE qualifications by level of qualification obtained and gender, 2008/09, 2007/08 and 2006/07.

Table 2a shows the Destinations of part-time UK and Other EU domiciled leavers obtaining HE qualifications by location of institution and level of qualification obtained, 2008/09, 2007/08 and 2006/07.

Table 3 shows the Destinations of full-time UK and Other EU domiciled first degree graduates by subject area of degree and gender, 2008/09, 2007/08 and 2006/07.

Table 4a shows the Occupation of full-time UK and Other EU domiciled first degree graduates entering employment in the UK by location of institution and subject area of degree, 2008/09, 2007/08 and 2006/07.

Table 4b shows the Industry of full-time UK and Other EU domiciled first degree graduates entering employment in the UK by location of institution and subject area of degree, 2008/09, 2007/08 and 2006/07.

Table 5 shows UK domiciled leavers who obtained first degree qualifications and entered full-time paid employment in the UK by location of institution, mode of study and salary, 2008/09 and 2007/08.

Table 6a shows the Geographical distribution of full-time UK domiciled leavers who entered employment within the UK by location of study, level of qualification obtained and location of employment, 2008/09, 2007/08 and 2006/07.

Table 6b shows the Geographical distribution of full-time UK domiciled leavers who entered employment within the UK by domicile, level of qualification obtained and location of employment 2008/09, 2007/08 and 2006/07.

This Statistical First Release (SFR) has been produced by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) in collaboration with statisticians from the UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG), the Scottish Government (SG) and the Department for Employment and Learning Northern Ireland (DEL(NI)). It has been released according to the arrangements approved by the UK Statistics Authority. It provides details of student enrolments and qualifications obtained by higher education (HE) students at HE institutions (HEIs) in the United Kingdom (UK) for the academic year 2009/10. Additionally for the first time this year the SFR includes information from the HESA Aggregate Offshore Record. This record captures students studying wholly outside the UK who are either registered with the reporting institution or who are studying for an award of the reporting institution.

Table 1 - All student enrolments on HE courses by level of study, mode of study and domicile 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 1a - All student enrolments on HE courses by location of institution, mode of study, domicile and level of study 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 2 - First year student enrolments on HE courses by level of study, mode of study and domicile 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 2a - First year student enrolments on HE courses by location of institution, mode of study, domicile and level of study 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 3 - Student enrolments on HE courses by mode of study, level of study and subject area 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 3a - Student enrolments on HE courses by location of institution, mode of study, level of study and subject area 2009/10.

Table 4 - UK domiciled, first year student enrolments on HE courses by domicile, location of institution, mode of study and level of study 2008/09 & 2009/10.

Table 5 - Qualifications obtained by students on HE courses at HEIs in the UK by mode of study, domicile, gender and level of qualification obtained 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 5a - Qualifications obtained by students on HE courses at HEIs in the UK by location of institution, mode of study, domicile, gender and level of qualification obtained 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 6 - Class of degree achieved by students obtaining first degree qualifications at HEIs in the UK by gender and mode of study 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 6a - Class of degree achieved by students obtaining first degree qualifications at HEIs in the UK by location of institution, gender and mode of study 2009/10.

Table 7 - Qualifications obtained by students on HE courses at HEIs in the UK by level of qualification obtained, gender and subject area 2005/06 to 2009/10.

Table 7a - Qualifications obtained by students on HE courses at HEIs in the UK by location of institution, level of qualification obtained, gender and subject area 2009/10.

Table 8 - Students studying wholly overseas by location, type of activity, level of provision and location of institution 2008/09 and 2009/10.

Last update: April 2013 Was added to StatsWales: April 2013 Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) Contact: post16ed.stats@wales.gsi.gov.uk The information in this table is taken from Performance Indicators in Higher Education in the UK available on the HESA web-site at www.hesa.ac.uk/pi. A Guide to Performance Indicators in Higher Education is also available at this web-site. The indicators are designed to provide reliable information on the nature and performance of the higher education sector in the UK. The performance indicators broadly cover access to higher education, non-continuation rates and outcomes. Indicators relate to higher education institutions in the individual countries of the UK. The Performance Indicators Steering Group (PISG) has led the development of these indicators. Members are drawn from the four higher education funding bodies for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (HEFCE, SHEFC, HEFCW, DEL); the Department for Education and Skills and other government departments, the Higher Education Statistics Agency, and universities and colleges through their representative bodies (Universities UK and SCOP) Since 2002/03 HESA has published the Performance Indicators on behalf of the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) who published them previously. A number of changes were introduced for the 2002/03 publication; further details can be found at www.hesa.ac.uk/pi . The access indicators relate to students starting in 2004/05; the indicators of non-continuation (students who do not continue after their first year) and of non-completion (students who drop out and do not resume later or transfer elsewhere) relate to the cohort starting in 2003/04. The disability indicator covers all students, not just entrants, on undergraduate programmes in 2004/05. WIDENING ACCESS: PERCENTAGE OF YOUNG FIRST DEGREE ENTRANTS FROM STATE SCHOOLS OR COLLEGES. School type is taken from previous institution attended. All schools or colleges that are not denoted ‘independent’ are assumed to be state schools. This means that students from sixth-form or further education colleges, for example, are included as being from state schools.

Last update: April 2013 Was added to StatsWales: April 2013 Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) Contact: post16ed.stats@wales.gsi.gov.uk The information in this table is taken from Performance Indicators in Higher Education in the UK available on the HESA web-site at www.hesa.ac.uk/pi. A Guide to Performance Indicators in Higher Education is also available at this web-site. The indicators are designed to provide reliable information on the nature and performance of the higher education sector in the UK. The performance indicators broadly cover access to higher education, non-continuation rates and outcomes. Indicators relate to higher education institutions in the individual countries of the UK. The Performance Indicators Steering Group (PISG) has led the development of these indicators. Members are drawn from the four higher education funding bodies for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (HEFCE, SHEFC, HEFCW, DEL); the Department for Education and Skills and other government departments, the Higher Education Statistics Agency, and universities and colleges through their representative bodies (Universities UK and SCOP) Since 2002/03 HESA has published the Performance Indicators on behalf of the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) who published them previously. A number of changes were introduced for the 2002/03 publication; further details can be found at www.hesa.ac.uk/pi . The access indicators relate to students starting in 2004/05; the indicators of non-continuation (students who do not continue after their first year) and of non-completion (students who drop out and do not resume later or transfer elsewhere) relate to the cohort starting in 2003/04. The disability indicator covers all students, not just entrants, on undergraduate programmes in 2004/05. WIDENING ACCESS: PERCENTAGE OF YOUNG FIRST DEGREE ENTRANTS FROM STATE SCHOOLS OR COLLEGES. School type is taken from previous institution attended. All schools or colleges that are not denoted ‘independent’ are assumed to be state schools. This means that students from sixth-form or further education colleges, for example, are included as being from state schools.

This statistic shows the number of students studying wholly in the European Union for a degree from higher education (HE) institutions registered in the United Kingdom (UK) in academic year 2016/17, by type of degree. In this academic year, there were 18,975 postgraduate students studying in the EU while registered with British HE providers.

This study supplies experimental statistics on the association between degree attainment (i.e. the proportion of first degree qualifiers awarded a first or upper second class) and our area-based measure of deprivation across the UK. Social mobility is often viewed as relating to the extent to which an individual’s outcomes (e.g. on the basis of earnings or employment) differ to that of their parents. Improving social mobility continues to be a key policy objective across all nations of the UK, with education seen as one of the potential ways in which this can be achieved. Consequently, this has led to regular statistics being distributed on attainment gaps in primary and secondary education by various measures of deprivation. The evidence consistently illustrates those experiencing greater levels of deprivation display lower levels of attainment, which can inhibit progress in raising social mobility.