Bermuda ranked fifth among 35 countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation & Development for the percentage of the population that held a university degree four years ago, new figures have revealed.

The Population and Housing Census Education Brief for 2016 said that 36 per cent of the population had a university degree.

The report grouped people into five academic qualification groups — none, high school certificate, technical/vocational certificate, diploma/associate degree, and university degree.

It showed that the group of university degree holders had the largest increase between 2010 and 2016 — up from 32 per cent to 36 per cent.

The report added that the group with no academic qualifications had dropped from 16 per cent to 7 per cent over the same period.

The largest concentration of people with no academic qualifications was in the eastern part of Pembroke.

The report added: “At the parish level, Pembroke and Sandys had the greatest percentage of persons without any academic qualifications at 9 per cent whereas Paget had the lowest at 5 per cent.”

It said that the greatest difference in educational achievement levels between Bermudians and non-Bermudians was at the university level.

The report added: “The proportion of non-Bermudians with a university degree — 52 per cent — was 22 percentage points higher than Bermudians with a university degree — 30 per cent.”

The gap was down from 23 percentage points in 2010.

The 2016 census counted 37,441 residents aged between 25 and 64.

The brief said: “Bermudians were more likely than non-Bermudians to have no academic qualifications or a high school certificate.

“The most frequently held qualification for Bermudians was a high school certificate and for non-Bermudians is was a university degree.”

The report added that 24 per cent of men had earned a university degree compared to 34 per cent of Bermudian women.

It said: “At the opposite end of the academic ladder, Bermudian men were twice as likely have no academic qualifications as their female peers.”

Other key findings of the report included:

• For non-Bermudians, 52 per cent held a university degree compared with 30 per cent of Bermudians

• Among women, 40 per cent had a university degree compared with 31 per cent for men

• A total of 52 per cent of white people had a university degree compared to 26 per cent for black people

• For 25 to 34 year olds, 44 per cent had a university degree compared with 25 per cent in the 55 to 64 year age group.

• Median annual gross income from the main job for workers without any academic qualifications was $47,186 compared to $98,108 for university degree holders — a gap of more than $50,900.

• The unemployment rate for people without any academic qualifications was 13.0 per cent compared to 2.9 per cent for university degree holders.

To read the full brief click the link under Related Media