Cyprus performs strongly in higher education, but its school students continue to lag behind the EU average in basic, digital and civic skills, according to the latest Education and Training Monitor from the European Union.

The report highlights broader concerns about the quality of education, warning that weak learning outcomes could affect young people’s career prospects and Cyprus’ competitiveness.

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PISA data show that 53.2% of students in Cyprus lack basic mathematics proficiency, compared with 29.5% across the EU. The gap is wider among students from disadvantaged backgrounds, reaching 69.8% in the lowest socioeconomic quartile, compared with 48% in the EU.

Advanced skills are also less common. Only 1.4% of Cypriot students demonstrate advanced reading skills, compared with 6.5% in the EU. The figures for mathematics and science stand at 3.9% and 2%, respectively, against EU averages of 7.9% and 6.9%. The report called for stronger evaluation and further measures to improve educational outcomes.

Digital And STEM Skills Remain A Concern

Digital proficiency is another weak point. Some 59% of eighth-grade students in Cyprus do not reach basic digital skills, compared with 43% across the EU and well above the bloc’s 2030 target of 15%.

Civic knowledge is also below average, with Cypriot students scoring 459 compared with 511 across the EU. Girls generally performed better than boys.

STEM participation remains low as well. Just 14.9% of students study science, technology, engineering and mathematics, compared with 26.9% across the EU. The figure has fallen by 3.4 percentage points since 2015 and is well below the proposed 32% target for 2030. Female participation, at 33.9%, is slightly above the EU average of 32.2%.

Higher Education Tells A Different Story

At the tertiary level, Cyprus performs considerably better. In 2024, 60.1% of people aged 25 to 34 held a tertiary qualification, compared with 44.2% across the EU and the bloc’s 2030 target of 45%.

The sector has expanded rapidly, with student numbers rising 42% between 2015 and 2023 and graduate numbers increasing 125% over the past decade. The growth has been supported partly by the expansion of private universities and higher education institutions since 2007.

Cyprus also has one of the EU’s highest rates of outward degree mobility, with 26.9% of students studying abroad compared with 4.4% across the bloc. Overall, 27.8% of Cypriot students studied outside the country.

The result is a mixed education picture: Cyprus has strong tertiary attainment, but significant gaps in basic, digital and STEM skills remain earlier in the education system.