Comparative Data on High Participation Systems

This chapter provides and discusses existing comparative data on higher education participation between various countries. The chapter starts with a review of the principal measures of participation, noting an inevitable tradeoff between optimum statistical measures and what is feasible given data limitations. After surveying participation in higher education in all countries, and noting that almost three-quarters have achieved enrolment ratios of at least 15 per cent, the chapter provides more detailed comparisons of the OECD member countries. The chapter proposes a composite Higher Education Participation Index which combines enrolment and output measures.