Education at a Glance 2019

Education at a Glance is the authoritative source for information on the state of education around the world. It provides data on the structure, finances and performance of education systems across OECD countries and a number of partner economies. More than 100 charts and tables in this publication – as well as links to much more available on the educational database – provides key information on the output of educational institutions; the impact of learning across countries; access, participation and progression in education; the financial resources invested in education; and teachers, the learning environment and the organisation of schools.The 2019 edition includes a focus on tertiary education with new indicators on tertiary completion rates, doctoral graduates and their labour market outcomes, and on tertiary admission systems, as well as a dedicated chapter on the Sustainable Development Goal 4. 

 

United States

•In 2018, an average of 49% of 25-34year-olds in the UnitedStates had attained tertiary educationwhich was higher than the OECD average of 44% but lower than 9 other OECD countries

TheUnited States spends USD 301651per student enrolled intertiary educational institutionseach year, the second highest amount after Luxembourg.

•Average actual salaries (including bonuses and allowances) of teachers in primary and secondary education in the United States are higher than the OECDaverage. However, U.S. teachers earn less than 70% of the salaries of full-time, full-year workers (25-64 year-olds) with tertiary education in the United States, some of the lowest relative earnings across all OECD countries.

•Despite increasing awareness of the importance of high-quality early childhood education and care (ECEC), enrolment in ECECat the age of 3 in theUnitedStates is 35percentage points below the OECD average.

Few students will pursue tertiary education beyond a bachelor’s degree although the rewards are high in the labour market

•In theUnited States, the share of young adults (25-34year-olds) with a tertiary degree increased by 8 percentage points between 2008 and 2018 to reach 49%, compared to the OECD average of 44%. However, the national figure conceals wide variation across states. In 2017, the rate varied within the United States from 32% in Louisiana and West Virginia to 73% in the District of Columbia (OECD, 2019[2]).

The United States has both high tuition fees and a large share of students receiving loan and grant assistance

•Among OECD countries, the UnitedStates spends the fifth highest proportion of its gross domestic product (GDP) on primary to tertiary educational institutions (6.0% compared to the OECD average of 5.0%), with expenditure at the primary and secondary level about the same as the OECD average (3.5%) but above-average expenditure at the tertiary level (2.5% vs. 1.5% on average across OECD countries).

•Annual expenditure per student on tertiary educational institutions was more than doublethe spending on primary education (USD12 184 in primary education against USD30 165 in tertiary education) and increased by 7% between 2010 and 2016. While most OECD countries allocate a greater share of their tertiary spending to research and development (R&D) than they do to ancillary services, the opposite is true in the United States: 14% of spending on tertiary institutions was devoted to ancillaryservices and 12% to R&D, compared to 5% and 29% respectively on average across OECD countries. on average across OECD countries.

of U.S. graduates completing science-related fields is similar to the OECD average

•The science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields –which encompass natural sciences, mathematics and statistics; information and communication technologies (ICT); and engineering, manufacturing and construction– are seen as especially important for fostering innovation and economic growth. In the UnitedStates, about 25% of tertiary-educated adults had studied STEM fieldsin 2018, a similar proportion to the OECDaverage.Among STEM fields, the fields that attract the largest shares in the United States are natural sciences, mathematics and statistics and engineering, manufacturing and construction. Each of these fields represented about 10% of the degrees held by tertiary-educated adults. While this was higher than the average across OECD countries for natural sciences, mathematics and statistics (5%), a lower share of U.S. tertiary-educated adults held a degree in engineering, manufacturing and construction than the OECD average (16%).

Gender gaps in education and employment persist

•On average across OECD countries, the gender gap in employmentratesdecreases with educational attainment. This trend also holds in the United States, where the gender gap in employment is particularly high among 25-34 year-olds with below upper secondary education. For this age group, the employment rate is 73% for men and 41% for women, a difference of 32 percentage points, compared to the average difference of 28 percentage points across OECD countries. The gap shrinks to 14 percentage points among U.S. adults with upper secondary or post-secondary non-tertiary education and to 7 percentage points among thosewith tertiary education

42% of doctoral graduates in this field

Enrolment in early childhood education and carein the U.S. is lower than the OECD despite increasing awareness of its importance

•Enrolment in early childhood education and care(ECEC) has experienced a surge of policy attention in OECD countries in recent decades. Universal or near-universal participation in at least one year of early childhood education and care is now the norm in OECD countries, which represents significant progress towards one of the education targets of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG4.2.2). The enrolment rate for 5-year-olds in pre-primary or primary education is 90%in the United States,slightly below the OECD average of 94%.

•Enrolment in ECEC before the age of 5 is less widespread in the United States than in mostOECD countries. On average, 88% of 4-year-oldsin OECD countriesare enrolled in pre-primary and primary education while in the United States the share is 66%. Among 3-year-olds the gap is even wider. Enrolment rates for3-year-olds in ECEC (ISCED 0) is 42%, well below the OECD average of 77%.

•This national average also conceals strong subnational differences. For instance, more than 70%of 3-5 year-olds were enrolled in ECEC and primary education in Connecticut, the District of Columbia, and New Jersey, compared to less than 50%in Idaho, North Dakota,and Wyoming(OECD, 2019[2]).

•The United States spends more in total for eachchild aged 3 to 5 enrolled in ECEC and primary education than the OECD average (USD9 213 per year compared to USD8 141).However, expenditure onchildren in this age group amounts to 0.4% of GDP, lower than the average across OECD countries (0.6%). In the United States, 26% of total spending on pre-primary education (ISCED 02) is privately funded, compared to 17% on average across OECD countries.

Teachers’ salaries are relatively low in comparison to salaries of tertiary-educated workers, but there are stronger financial incentives for school heads

•Compared to other OECD countries where the teaching profession is clearly ageing, the United States has a smaller share of teachers approaching retirement age. Some 29% of primary and lower secondary teachers and 34% of upper secondary teachers are aged 50 or over, below the OECD averages of 33% for primary teachers, 37% for lower secondary teachers and 40% for upper secondary teachers.

•Teachers from pre-primary to secondary level are expected work, on average,about 2000 hours a year in the United States, compared to approximately 1 600hours on average across OECD countries. Along with Chile and Switzerland, these are the longeststatutory working hoursacross OECD countries. Teaching time represents around half of teachers’total working time in the United Statesat all levels of education. In contrast, on average across OECD countries, teaching time represents about 60% at pre-primary, 50% at primary and 40% at secondary levels.

•A typical U.S. student will attend school for a total of 8 884 hours over nine yearsto complete primary and lower secondary education, 1 293 hours more than the OECD average.