68.5% ▲ +101.0%
Higher than 99% of urban area areas.
- 2011: 34.1%
- 2016: 38.1%
- 2021: 68.5%
Share of people whose highest year of school is Year 12 or equivalent.
Sydney · Urban Area
Education & Qualifications in Sydney
How far people went at school, the qualifications they hold and what they studied.
More residents in Sydney hold high-level degrees than in most similar areas. A striking 34.6% of adults have a bachelor degree or higher, which is well above the national figure. This shift toward higher education is clear, with the number of people finishing university nearly tripling since 2011.
Schooling
Highest year of school completed.
School completion has climbed sharply, with 68.5% of people finishing Year 12. This is well above the 58.8% national figure and represents a 34 point increase since 2011.
Highest year of school
View on map →In Sydney, Year 12 is the majority at 73%; Year 10 is next at 14%.
Qualifications
Post-school qualifications and degrees.
The typical resident is well-qualified, as 34.6% of adults hold a bachelor degree or higher. This is well above the New South Wales figure of 27.8%, with postgraduate degrees and certificates also common.
34.6% ▲ +223.3%
Higher than 99% of urban area areas.
- 2011: 10.7%
- 2016: 13.0%
- 2021: 34.6%
Share of people aged 15+ whose highest qualification is a bachelor degree or above (incl. graduate and postgraduate).
Highest qualification level
View on map →In Sydney, the largest group is Bachelor degree at 40%, followed by Certificate III / IV (20%) and Postgraduate degree (18%).
Field of study
What people studied.
Management and commerce are the most popular fields of study at 25.1%. Other common qualifications include society and culture at 12.2% and engineering at 11.7%.
Sources
- Census of Population and Housing — Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021 (CC BY 4.0).
More for Sydney
Cite this page
Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2021). Education & Qualifications in Sydney [Census of Population and Housing]. CensusAtlas, used under CC BY 4.0. https://censusatlas.au/region/sua/1031/sydney/topic/education