17. How many IVET students graduate in STEM subjects?

Skills in STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) are of considerable importance for technological activities and progress across the EU. IVET contributes to STEM skills development.  

The indicator below is defined as the number of graduates from upper secondary vocational education (ISCED 3) who successfully completed their studies in STEM subjects, expressed as a percentage of all graduates from upper secondary vocational education. For this indicator STEM graduates are defined as vocational upper secondary graduates in the following broad fields of education (ISCED F-2013): Natural sciences, mathematics and statistics; Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs); Engineering, manufacturing and construction.EU averages are estimated from available country data. 

Figure 17. STEM graduates from upper secondary VET (% of total)  

Source: Cedefop calculations based on Eurostat data, UOE data collection on formal education systems.

Key points

Estimates are that, on average, 37.4.% of graduates from upper secondary VET obtained a qualification in STEM subjects in the EU in 2020. Highest shares were in Estonia, Lithuania, Cyprus, Poland and Hungary (all above 50%). Spain, the Netherlands and Ireland had the lowest shares (below 25%). In the EU overall,  the percentage was relatively stable between 2015 and 2020. Over this period, some considerable changes were observed at national level. The largest fall was in Greece (by 18.1 percentage points) and Malta (13.2 percentage points). The highest increase was reported in Belgium and Denmark (by more than 10 percentage points in both countries). Among the non-EU countries for which 2020 data were available, Iceland and Norway scored values above the EU average, with the former reporting a considerable increase by over 15 percentage points. In Switzerland, Montenegro and Turkey the percentage of upper secondary VET graduates in STEM subjects was below the EU average, with the latter reporting a considerable drop by about 19 percentage points. 

Table 17. STEM graduates from upper secondary VET (% of total) 

Source: Cedefop calculations based on Eurostat data, UOE data collection on formal education systems. Notes: d) ‘definition differs’; p) Eurostat: ‘provisional; V) Cedefop estimated weighted average based on available country data; data are not presented when they are not available and/or do not support sufficiently reliable comparisons across countries or over time.