More than half of Australian 15-year-olds are planning to go to university and more than 40 per cent of 19-year-olds have degrees or are on their way to obtaining them, data show. Figures from a study by the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth, a research programme, suggest that the country could easily hit the government’s target for 40 per cent of young adults to have higher qualifications by 2025. The survey, which tracks the education and careers of around 14,000 young people from the age of 15, reveals that aspirations to enter university among those measured jumped from 49 to 60 per cent between 1998 and 2003, before levelling to the mid-50s in 2006 and 2009, The Australian reported. Attainment rates are also improving, the survey suggests.
Source: Times Higher Education http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=421072&c=1