A highly educated workforce can contribute to public sector transformation through greater capacity to address complex challenges and take decisions based on evidence. Although public servants in central administrations are, on average, highly educated, levels vary significantly across OECD countries. This may be explained by differences in recruitment policies, salary levels, returns for graduate-level degrees and wider societal factors. In some countries, having an advanced education degree is an entry requirement for most central administration positions, while other countries place greater emphasis on technical qualifications or work experience.
In 2023, on average, around 75% of the central administration employees in OECD countries held an undergraduate (bachelor’s) or graduate (master’s or doctoral) degree, fairly evenly distributed between the two higher levels. However, countries vary greatly in the distribution of undergraduate and graduate degree holders. In Israel, Lithuania, Slovenia and the Slovak Republic more than 60% hold a graduate degree (Figure 13.6).
On average, central administration employees are more likely to hold a graduate-level degree (39.8%) than those in the overall economy (17.3%). The only exception is in Portugal (where 9.3% of employees in the central administration hold graduate degrees, compared to 21.6% of those in employment) (Figure 13.6).
Managerial positions are predominantly filled by those with graduate degrees. On average, 74.8% of senior managers in central administrations, and 60.2% of middle managers, hold a graduate degree. In contrast, only 5% of senior managers and 10.2% of middle managers lack a university education (Figure 13.7).
The educational levels among those in professional non-managerial roles are more evenly distributed. While most of these public servants hold graduate (42.6%) or undergraduate degrees (37.6%), a larger share of employees have a non-university education (19.8%) than those in managerial roles (Figure 13.8).
Levels of education are linked to career entry points, progression and access to managerial roles. However, the high share of graduate degrees among managers could indicate the existence of a "paper ceiling", where those without such degrees may face barriers to advancement, regardless of their skills, experience or performance. Such barriers can reduce diversity in leadership and discourage capable public servants from pursuing managerial positions. To address this, and create a more inclusive, skilled and adaptable public administration, governments should promote learning and development opportunities and create a culture of career-long learning among public servants (OECD, 2023). Internal workforce development strategies, enabling skills and qualifications to be earned during their careers, can help the most capable employees to advance into more senior roles.
