Analysing the educational level of the population from 25 to 64 years old in the Basque Country, the fall in the number of people without education or with education below secondary level stands out, both in the Basque Country and in the 27 European Union states. In the Basque Country, the percentage of people without
education or with education below secondary level was 47.7% in 2002, falling to 22.7% by 2023. Alongside this, the number of people with secondary school qualifications rose from 19.6% to 24.6%, and those with tertiary qualifications rose from 32.7% to 52.7%.
In comparison, across the 27 states of the European Union, the proportion of people with no education or education below secondary level came to 20.2%, that of people with secondary education stood at 44.7% and those with tertiary education made up 35.1%. Thus, in comparison with other European regions, the Basque Country was above average in tertiary education, and among states only Ireland was ahead, at 54.5%.