This map shows the percent of early school leavers in the Nordic Region (NUTS 2 level) and Baltic states in 2016, calculated as the total number of individuals aged 18-24 having a lower secondary education as the highest level attained and not being involved in further education or training. The numbers in each region indicate the proportion of females per 100 males.
The yellow/red shading indicates the percent of early school leavers in 2016. The lighter the colour the lower the percentage of early school leavers in 2016. The grey colour indicates no data.
Early school leaving is of concern in the Nordic Region to varying degrees. From a pan-European perspective, the Danish (7.2%), Swedish (7.4%) and Finnish (7.9%) averages all fall below the EU average (10.7%) and are in line with the Europe 2020 target of below 10%. The Norwegian average (10.9%) remains slightly above the target but is comparable to the EU average. The average rate of early school leaving in Iceland (19.8%) is substantially higher than the other Nordic countries and the EU average. There is both a spatial and a gender dimension to this problem. The spatial dimension of early school leaving is highlighted in this map, which shows rates of early school leaving in the Nordic Region at the NUTS 2 level. The map highlights the comparatively high rates in Norway, particularly in the north. It is worth noting that, although still high in a Nordic comparative perspective, early school leaving rates have decreased in all Norwegian regions since 2012. Rates are also high in Greenland, with a staggering 57.5% of young people aged 18–24 years who are not currently studying and who have lower secondary as their highest level of educational attainment. The map also shows the gender dimension of early school leaving, with young men more likely to leave school early in most regions. At a national level, the gender gap is most pronounced in Iceland (51% higher rate for males), Norway (45%) and Denmark (44 %) and least in Sweden (28%) and Finland (30%). At a regional level, the largest gender gaps can be found in Etelä-Suomi (153% higher for males), Småland med Öarna (113% higher), and Trøndelag (105% higher).
