The line graph illustrates the changes in the proportion of actual and predicted employment according to educational degree in the UK over the 35-year period from 1990 to 2025.
Overall, we can see that the proportion of people with a Bachelor’s degree has skyrocketed, while the percentage of those without a school certificate has fallen significantly. From an overall perspective, the percentage of people with a Bachelor’s degree has increased slightly. It is also clear that although these figures started at the same level, the number of individuals without a school certificate has dropped sharply, reaching an all-time low.
Between 1990 and 2025, there was a dramatic increase in the proportion of people holding a Master’s degree, rising from 0% to about 35%, peaking in 2025. The proportion of individuals with Bachelor’s degrees went through an unstable period. From 1990 to 2000, this figure rose slightly to 14%, but then it decreased to 10% in 2005. It continued to grow to 15% over the next five years. Despite a decline in 2015, it still rose gradually, reaching approximately 17%.
From 1990 to 2020, the percentage of people with a high school education witnessed a moderate decline, falling from 0% to -5%. After that, it recovered slightly to -3% in 2025. At the same time, the number of individuals without any school certificate fell dramatically from 1990 to 2025, dropping from 0% to about -14%. By 2025, this figure reached its lowest point.