Age distribution of new entrants into tertiary-type A programmes (OECD Education at a Glance 2011)

   Typical students in higher education vary substantially by society. The above figure indicates an age distribution of new entrants into tertiary-type A programmes (roughly equivalent to universities) across selected OECD countries.

  Japan is the least heterogeneous country in terms of age: 80% of new entrants are below 19. This fact must be related to the practices of simultaneous recruting of new graduates and long-term employemt. Most people in Japan never go back to education once they enter the labor market. Sweden is an interesting contrast, where the 80th age percentile is 29.4. The country is known for its lifelong learning policies and universal access to higher education. Korea is similar to Japan with respect to the 20th and 50th percentiles, but shows a greater heterogeneity in the 80th percentile. The difference may partly come from the existence of military draft in Korea.