Degree-level qualifications
The share of residents aged 16 and over whose highest qualification is at level 4 or above: a degree, foundation degree, HNC, HND, NVQ level 4 or a professional qualification.
- Published by
- Office for National StatisticsNISRA Census 2021
- Level of detail
- Output area
- Published for
- Nation, Region, Council, Constituency, Ward, Middle area, Neighbourhood and Output area
- Covers
- England, Wales and Northern Ireland
- Updates
- Every 10 years
- Latest period
- 2021
- Published
- 19 January 2023
- Fetched by Open Index
- 15 October 2026
- Licence
- Open Government Licence 3.0
Where it covers
- England
- Wales
- Northern Ireland
- Scotland(not covered)
Scotland's census groups qualifications differently (HNCs and HNDs sit below its degree level), so its figures are not shown with the rest of the UK.
- England178,605 of 178,605 output areas have a figure
- Wales10,275 of 10,275 output areas have a figure
- Scotland0 of 46,363 output areas have a figure
1,000 output areas have no figure for 2021. The map hatches each one and gives the reason.
- Scotland's census groups qualifications differently (HNCs and HNDs sit below its degree level), so its figures are not shown with the rest of the UK. Output area in Dyce - 07, Output area in Dyce - 07, Output area in Denmore - 05, Output area in Dyce - 07, Output area in Oldmachar West - 01, Output area in Dyce - 07 and 994 more
How it is made
Open Index shows the figures as Office for National Statistics and NISRA Census 2021 publish them, for the areas they were published for: nations, regions, councils, constituencies, wards, middle areas, neighbourhoods and output areas.
Rates for larger areas are worked out again from their own counts and populations, never averaged from output areas.
Zoom in past output area level and the map keeps the output area shapes and says so, rather than inventing detail.
- Nation2021 only
- Region2021 only
- Council2021 only
- Constituency2021 only
- Ward2021 only
- Middle area2021 only
- Neighbourhood2021 only
- Output area2021 only
Before you use it
- Level 4 and above covers degrees, higher degrees, foundation degrees, HNCs, HNDs, NVQ level 4 and 5, and professional qualifications such as teaching, nursing and accountancy.
- Qualifications gained abroad are counted at the nearest equivalent level, or as other qualifications if the level is unknown.
- Percentages worked out by Open Index from the published counts.
- England, Wales and Northern Ireland held their census on 21 March 2021.
- Each census office makes small random changes to counts to protect privacy, so the smallest areas can be a few people out, and small areas do not add up exactly to larger ones.
- Wards and constituencies are worked out by Open Index by adding up the census areas that best fit them, so they are close but not exact. Councils whose boundaries changed after the census are added up from output areas.
- Northern Ireland has no 2021 output areas. Its smallest census areas are Data Zones, so the map holds at that level there.
Colours on the map
Fixed breaks, held for every period, so colours mean the same over time.
How Open Index describes it
Page text on Open Index comes from this layer’s sentence rules, filled in with published figures. For Hackney:
52.4% of residents aged 16 and over in Hackney had a degree-level qualification at the census.
In London the figure is 46.7%.
Sources and licences
- Edition
- Census 2021 topic summaries (Nomis bulk)
- Published
- 19 January 2023
- Fetched by Open Index
- 15 October 2026
- Licence
- Open Government Licence 3.0
- Edition
- Census 2021 Flexible Table Builder extract, October 2026
- Fetched by Open Index
- 15 October 2026
- Licence
- Open Government Licence 3.0