The most educated people tend to be in countries where tertiary qualification spending is among the highest. Tertiary education spending in six of the most educated countries was higher than the OECD average of $13,957. Spending on a tertiary education in the U.S., for example, was $26,021 per senior, by far the most in the world. According to Andreas Schleicher, an executive for education skills at the OECD, education in the U.S. has grown much more expensive, and student debt loads have reached troubling levels in modern years. Despite these laws, it is still considered a good asset, as U.S. residents with higher degrees earn significantly more than their smaller educated peers.

As Schleicher explained, “We characteristically describe people by their formal qualifications, but this data suggests that the skill value of formal qualifications vary considerably across countries.” however, countries with strong higher education systems tend to have bigger levels of higher skills. Roughly 12% of adults over the OECD performed at the highest education proficiency level in 2012. The percentage of adults performing at the highest literacy stage exceeded that figure in five of the most educated countries.

Those higher skills may be paying off for inhabitants. Only Ireland had an unemployment percentage higher than the OECD rate of 7.5% in 2012. According to Schleicher, this association may also work the other way around because those who are engaged are far more likely to pursue higher education and training. Perversely, this means “those who need life-long learning the most get the least out of it.” To identify the most educated countries in the world, 24/7 Wall St. review the ten countries with the highest proportions of residents aged 25 to 64 with a tertiary education in 2012. These data figures were obtained as part of the OECD’s Education at a Glance report.

The countries ranked below incorporated the 34 OECD member countries and ten non-OECD nations. Included in the report were data on the amount of adults completing various levels of education, unemployment rates, as well as federal and private education expenditure. We also examined data from the OECD’s Survey of Adult Skills, which incorporated advanced adult proficiency in both math and reading. The most present figures for education expenditure by country are from 2011.

List of Top 10 Most Educated Countries In the World 2015 Ranking

10. Ireland

Nearly 40% of Irish adults amid the ages of 25 to 64 had tertiary qualifications in 2012, the 10th highest rate among all countries reviewed by the OECD. It represented a substantial increase from more than a decade ago when just 21.6% of adults had completed some form of higher education. Worsening trade opportunities in recent years may have made higher education more engaging to the country’s residents. More than 13% of the people was unemployed in 2012, one of the leading rates among countries ranked. The stopping rate for college-educated adults, however, was considerably lower. Pursuing higher education is especially attractive for nationals of European Union countries because their tuition is heavily subsidized at public institutions in Ireland.

9. New Zealand

The global economic crisis did not have a dramatic impact on public education spending in New Zealand as it did in many other countries. While public educational expenditure decreased in some OECD nations between 2008 and 2011, public education spending in New Zealand grew by more than 20% over that time, among the larger increases. Still, spending on the higher study is low contrary to further developed countries. In 2011, survey, $10,582 was used per student in the country on the tertiary study, less than the OECD average of $13,957. Despite spending less than the average per tertiary student, however, spending on all other forms of education accounted for 14.6% of total public spending in New Zealand, more than any other country ranked.

8. United Kingdom

While many stronger economies, including the U.S, grew among 2008 and 2012, the United Kingdom’s economy shrunk over that time. Despite the downturn, public education expenditure as a percentage of GDP increased in the country more than any OECD nation over the same period. The U.K is one of just a few countries with a “sustainable approach to higher education finance,” according to Schleicher. Every student in the country has access to an income-contingent loan, meaning refund is not required until the student’s income exceeds a certain threshold.

7. Australia

More than $16,000 was paid per student in tertiary education in Australia, among the higher rates in the OECD. Australia’s higher education system is one of the most popular among international students, attracting 5% of all international students. By measuring, the U.S., which has many times the number of schools, attracted only three times as many international students. And higher education appears to pay off for products that remain in the country. The unemployment rate among residents with tertiary skills was below than all other regions, but a handful of countries reviewed in 2012. Furthermore, an 18% of adults performed at the highest education level in 2012, considerably higher than the OECD average of 12%.

6. Korea

Despite paying less than $10,000 per student in tertiary study in 2011, less than any other country on this list except for Russia and Korean citizens have turned to the world’s most educated people. Whereas simply 13.5% of Korean adults aged 55-64 had developed tertiary degrees in 2012, over two-thirds of 25 to 34 year-olds, had. The 50 division points was by far the largest generational change among all countries reviewed. Nearly 73% of tertiary education changing came from private sources in 2011, more than all but one other country. High levels of private changing tend to exacerbate inequalities. The increase in educational attainment and educational mobility, though, is likely due to relatively equitable access to higher education in Korea. Koreans were most likely to access higher education among all countries ranked according to the OECD.

5. United States

In 2011, more than $26,000 was used on tertiary education per student in the United States, nearly double the OECD average of $13,957. The private expense in the form of education fees accounted for the majority of this spending. Higher education expenditures have cleared off to some degree, as a large proportion of U.S. adults has very high levels of qualification. Because of the slow growth rates of the past decade, however, the United States has slipped behind many other countries. While spending per tertiary student among 2005 and 2011 increased by 10% across OECD nations on average, U.S. spending decreased over that time. And the U.S. was one of only six countries to cut public education spending between 2008 and 2011. Like other countries where regional authorities control education, tertiary attainment levels vary widely in the United States, from as little as 29% in Nevada, to as much as 71% in the District of Columbia.

4. Israel

Most 18-year old Israelis are subjected to at minimum two years of mandatory military service. Perhaps, as a result, country dwellers tend to complete higher education degrees later in life than in other countries. The mandatory conscription, however, has not lowered educational attainment rates, as 46% of Israeli adults had attained a tertiary qualification in 2012. And then $11,500 was spent per student in tertiary education in 2011, lower than most other developed countries. Low education spending in Israel has resulted in low teacher salaries. New secondary teacher hires with minimum training were paid less than $19,000 in 2013, versus an OECD average of more than $32,000.

3. Japan

Like the U.S., Korea, and the U.K, private spending accounts for the vast majority of spending on tertiary education in Japan. While this can often lead to political inequalities, Schleicher revealed that like many Asian nations, Japanese parents are by and large willing to spend money for their children’s educations. Great education expenditure and support in higher education does not significantly translate to higher academic skills. In Japan, however, the higher spending did lead to better learning outcomes, as more than 23% of adults performed at the special level of literacy rate nearly double the OECD average of 12%. Younger followers also seem to be well-educated, as Japan reported unusually high Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) scores in mathematics in 2012.

2. Canada

More than half of Canadian grown-ups had received a tertiary education in 2012, the only nation other than Russia where a major portion of adults had any higher education. Canada’s education expense of $23,226 per student in 2011 trailed only the United States’ expenditure. Canadian seniors of all ages appear to be very well-educated. Secondary school students outperformed the majority of nations in mathematics on the PISA in 2012. And almost 15% of adults in the country played at the highest level of literacy proficiency, versus an OECD average of 12%.

1. Russian Federation

Russia Claims to be the Most Educated Country in the world in 2016 Rankings. More than 53% of Russian men between the ages of 25 and 64 had some form of higher education in 2012, more than in any other country reviewed by the OECD. The country has given this exceptional level of attainment despite spending among the least in tertiary education. Russia’s tertiary study expenditure was just $7,424 per student in 2010, roughly half the OECD average of $13,957. Russia was also one of just a few countries where education spending declined between 2008 and 2012.