Top 10 Most Educated Countries in the World

1. Canada: Canada is the only nation where more than half of all adults had a tertiary education in 2010. This was up from 40% of the adult population in 2000, when the country also ranked as the world’s most educated. Canada has managed to become a world leader in education without being a leader in education spending, which totaled just 6.1% of GDP in 2009, or less than the 6.3% average for the OECD. A large amount of its spending went towards tertiary education, on which the country spent 2.5% of GDP, trailing only the United States and South Korea. One of the few areas Canada did not perform well in was attracting international students, who made up just 6.6% of all tertiary students — lower than the OECD’s 8% average.



 2. Israel: Israel only joined the OECD in 2010. That year, its GDP per capita was more than $7,000 below the OECD’s average. Despite this, the country’s high school graduation rate was 92% in 2010, well above the OECD’s 84% average. Some 46% of residents had a tertiary education, versus 31% for the OECD. Israel spent 7.2% of GDP on educational institutions in 2009, the sixth most among all nations. And for the first time, preschool education will become free in 2012 even for children as young as three years old, Haaretz newspaper reported. This should benefit Israel as, according to the OECD, “early childhood education is associated with better performance later on in school.”

 3. Japan : In 2009, Japan spent 1.6% of GDP on college or college equivalent education, on par with the OECD’s average, and just 5.2% of GDP on education overall, well below the OECD’s 6.3% average. Despite its relatively light spending, the country still had a high school graduation rate of 96%, the second best among all nations in 2010, while the percentage of its population with a tertiary education was 14 percentage points higher than the OECD’s average. However, according to The Wall Street Journal, recent university graduates in Japan have struggled to find work, with 15% those graduating in the spring of 2012 neither employed nor enrolled in further education as of August.

4. United States: Although the U.S. is one of just a few nations where more than 40% of people had a tertiary education in 2010, its education system is not without problems. Among the concerns, the graduation rate for upper secondary students in 2010 was 77%, well below the average rate of 84% for the OECD. Even though graduation rates were relatively low, the U.S. is one of the biggest spenders on education, with related expenditures equaling 7.3% of GDP in 2009. The U.S. was also the world’s largest spender on tertiary education in 2009, at 2.6% of GDP. The majority of funds for higher education, totaling 1.6% of GDP, came from private sources.

5. New Zealand: The tiny country’s population has grown 13.2% between 2000 and 2010, as has the country’s education system. The number of people with a college or college equivalent education rose from 29% to 41% over the period. The country also has become a destination of choice for international students, who made up 14.2% of tertiary students in 2010. New Zealand is also a leader in educating scientists, with 16% of students choosing a science for their field of study at the tertiary level — the highest proportion of any country.

6. South Korea: Between 2000 and 2010, the percentage of South Koreans with a college education or more rose from 24% to 40%. In addition to being well-educated, many residents also invested considerable amounts towards their schooling. In 2009, only Iceland spent more than South Korea’s 8% of GDP. That year, no country in the study contributed more private funds for education at all levels than South Korea, at 3.1% of GDP, or for tertiary education, at 1.9%. Despite the investment, education does not appear to have a measurable impact on job seekers. The unemployment rate in 2010 for those with a tertiary degree was 3.3% — low relative to the OECD average of 4.7%, but not much lower than the 3.7% rate for all workers in the country.

 7. U.K: Between 2000 and 2010, the percentage of U.K. residents with a tertiary education rose 12 percentage points. The country’s universities are also popular among students from other nations. International students make up 16% of enrollment. The country recently has had a shift in how education is financed. While in 2000 the percentage of funds from private sources was 14.8%, it rose to 31.1% by 2009. Students also must cover more of the cost of higher education than in the past, as the cap on tuition fees was raised from 3,290 pounds to 9,000 pounds for the 2012-2013 year.

8. Finland: Finland spent 6.4% of its gross domestic product on education in 2009, with 97.6% of these funds coming from public sources, more than any country in the report. Between 2000 and 2010, high school graduation rates rose by just two percentage points, while the number of people with a college education or more rose by just six percentage points. As a result, Finland fell from fourth to eighth place among the world’s most educated countries. Finnish workers with a tertiary education were far more likely to be employed than those without such an education — the unemployment rate was 4.4% for residents with a degree and 8.4% for those without.

9. Australia: Australia is a preferred destination for many international students, which is why it should come as no surprise that they accounted for 21.2% of the country’s tertiary students in 2010, higher than every country other than Luxembourg. Finding a job in the country is not especially hard for those with a college degree. The country had an unemployment rate of just 2.8% in 2010 for workers with a tertiary degree, compared to a rate of just 5.2% for all workers.

10. Ireland: From 2000 through 2010, the percentage of people with a college education or more in Ireland nearly doubled, rising at an annual average of 7.3% — faster than any country in the study. High school graduation rates also rose during that time, from 74% to 94%. Education has become especially critical for male job seekers in Ireland’s workforce, as 6.3% of men with a tertiary education were unemployed in 2010 versus 15.2% for all men nationwide.

Top 9 saddest countries in the world

These are countries that have made it to the bottom rung of the happiness ladder. Many factors such as life expectancy, GDP, local purchasing power and basic amenities were considered. The conditions in these countries aren't exactly inspiring and one can only hope things get better for the people living there.

9. Lying ninth place to the last is Sudan. With serious political upheaval that has led to what seems like an unending civil war, life in Sudan could be compared to hell on earth. There is vast unemployment, a terrible case of lawlessness, wide-spread poverty, and hunger. It could be said that happiness in Sudan has fled as it almost strikes us as the devil's backyard.

8. On the eighth position is Yemen. This far east country is an epitome of civil unrest and religious extremism.  There are few or non-existent liberties. Education for girls is almost zero and there is only a third report of any form of employment. Yemen isn't hell but it must have a branch of hell in it.

7. Pakistan occupies the seventh place. With an ineffective and a very unstable government, surviving in Pakistan has all the odds stacked against it. There is a very high level of insecurity and the locals are known to be very intolerant of outsiders. We think although the devil doesn't live in this country, there must be some ''HELLBURGER'' outlet somewhere in the country.

6.Let's all give it up for Ethiopia. Although we don't see why Ethiopia should occupy this unenviable position, several goings-on in the country point to why this is so. Literacy is just 30%, undernourishment is 40% and the unemployment rate is 20%. With little resources to go around, there is a grim, sombre atmosphere. You might want to watch your mien and the way you laugh/smile when you travel to Ad-dis-ababa, the locals might mistake you for a loony for laughing.

5. How about a round of applause for Zimbabwe. We love this country but can't understand what in hell is going on. There is absurd, rotten kleptocracy and absolute lack of civil rights. Political violence is commonplace while the literacy level is abysmal. The life expectancy in Zimbabwe is absurd and there is total disillusionment and despair in town. The inflation rate is another source of concern. We still don't think the devil lives here but he sure doesn't live far from it.

4. Central African Republic. There is a looming, complete absence of hope in this hell-hole. More than 10% of children die in their first year. There is no foundation for future growth, only a few percentage have access to adequate sanitation facilities and many cannot afford food and shelter. The CAR could as well be another gate-way to hell. Does God hate the CAR so much? It's so disturbing how life is in this country. We are tempted to say poverty and depression were invented in the Central African Republic.

3. Well, if  the CAR is bad, then life in Chad is definitely worse. Home to the famous lake Chad, life should have ordinarily been not so bad in this small African nation but for drought and famine. The Chad lake has dried up and has taken the livelihood of most of the locals with it. The economy of this country has been destroyed and with the huge number of refugees streaming in from neighboring Dar-fur, no respite seems to be in sight.

2. Before our winner is the Democratic Republic of Congo. Years of civil war and genocide have torn this country apart. There are abundant cases of rape and statistics show that 48 women are raped every hour in the Congo, which makes it 1,152 women per day. The country can only boast of being richer than Zimbabwe which lies on the rock bottom of the GDP table. The irony of it all is that the DR C  has one of the largest and richest mineral deposits in Africa but because of the exploitation of the people and God knows what, the Congolese people are suffering so badly.

1. And the winner is Somalia. We almost couldn't call this place a country. No laws exist. Nothing works and there's absolutely no hope for a better future. Do people still live in Somalia? Somalia has gained international reputation recently as being the largest hub of pirate attacks on passing international vessels. The average life expectancy is 49 or perhaps less. There has been several attempts to build legitimate governments but these governments keep crumbling like a deck of cards, making way for economic instability and war.

With this list, there's only question that comes to mind: What's wrong Africa?