52.5% of 25-34-year-olds in Spain hold higher education qualifications

Spain has managed to get more than half of its 25 to 34-year-olds to hold higher education qualifications, surpassing the European average and the targets set for 2030.

## more degrees, more future

In **Spain**, things are changing, and for the better, when it comes to our young people's education. It is no longer just a few; more than half, **52.5%** to be exact, of people aged **25 to 34** have higher education. That is what **Eurostat** tells us for the year **2025**. And it is no small antiestéticat, because compared with the rest of the **European Union**, which stands at **44.8%**, we are well ahead.

This means that almost one in two young Spaniards holds a university degree, a master's, a doctorate or equivalent higher-level training. And the most interesting part is that this figure has grown enormously since **2005**, when only **40.7%** reached this level. Almost 12 percentage points more in just two decades.

## beating the targets

The good thing about having so many young people with higher education is that we are not only improving our own average, but we have already met targets the **European Union** had set for **2030**. They wanted at least **45%** of young people to have higher education by that year. With that **52.5%** in **2025**, we are already almost 8 points above that goal. The European average, for its part, is just two tenths away from reaching it.

Higher education in Spain, according to the classification used by **Eurostat** (the **ISCED**), ranges from short-cycle programmes to doctorates. So we are not just talking about university degrees, but a broader range of specialised training.

## the gender gap persists

But not everything is perfect. If we look at the data in a bit more detail, we see there is still a significant difference between men and women. In **Spain**, **58.7%** of young women aged **25 to 34** have higher education, compared with **46.6%** of men. The gap is more than 12 points.

This gender gap is not unique to Spain; it is also seen across the **European Union** as a whole, where **50.5%** of young women have higher education compared with **39.3%** of men. In both cases, Spain is above the average, but the difference between the sens remains a point to bear in mind.

The evolution of these figures is good news for the country's future, as a better-educated population usually translates into greater capacity for innovation and development. However, it is key that this rise in qualifications also translates into better job opportunities and a smaller gender gap in access to them.