Education

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• Highest certificate, diploma or degree
• Postsecondary educational attainment
• Barriers to further education or training
• Literacy and numeracy

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Highest certificate, diploma, or degree

Description for Chart 13

Almost half of Aboriginal people reported they had a postsecondary qualification

In 2011, almost half (48%) of Aboriginal people aged 25 to 64 reported they had a postsecondary qualification. By comparison, about two thirds (65%) of non-Aboriginal people in the same age group had a postsecondary qualification, a difference of 17 percentage points.

Further, 45% of First Nations people aged 25 to 64 years had postsecondary qualifications, compared to 55% of Métis and 36% of Inuit in the same age group.

There was also a difference in the proportion of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people with 'no certificate, diploma or degree'. Among Aboriginal people aged 25 to 64, 29% had 'no certificate, diploma or degree' while the proportion of non-Aboriginal people in the same age group with the same level of education was 12%.

The proportion of Aboriginal people aged 25 to 64 with a high school diploma or equivalent as their highest level of educational attainment was 23%, the same proportion as observed for the non-Aboriginal population.

For additional information on education attainment, see 2011 National Household Survey: Data tables.

Postsecondary educational attainment

Description for Chart 14

Aboriginal people more likely to have trades and college certificates than university degrees

Of those with First Nations identity aged 25 to 64 years, 45% had postsecondary qualifications: 13% had a trades certificate; 19% had a college diploma; and 9% had a university degree.

Over half (55%) of Métis in the same age group had postsecondary qualifications: 16% had a trades certificate; 23% had a college diploma; 4% a university certificate or diploma below the bachelor level; and 12% had a university degree. These are the highest proportions among the three Aboriginal groups (First Nations people, Métis and Inuit).

More than one-third (36%) of Inuit aged 25 to 64 had postsecondary qualifications: 13% had a trades certificate; 16% had a college diploma; 2% had a university certificate or diploma below the bachelor level; and 5% had a university degree.

For additional information on education attainment, see The educational attainment of Aboriginal peoples in Canada.

Barriers to further education or training

Table 2
Barriers to further education or training, by Aboriginal identity, high school completers and leavers aged 18 to 44 years, Canada, 2012
Table summary
This table displays the results of Barriers to further education or training Off-reserve First Nations people, Métis, Inuit, completers and leavers, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).

	Off-reserve First Nations people		Métis		Inuit
	completersNote †	leavers	completersNote †	leavers	completersNote †	leavers
	percent
Time constraints	24	38Note *	21	48Note *	26	39Note *
Courses do not match needs	19	26Note *	18	30Note *	27	27
Lack of confidence/preparedness	20	42Note *	19	46Note *	22	32Note *
Not a personal priority	25	45Note *	24	41Note *	27	43Note *
Cost	34	42Note *	37	52Note *	18	19
Personal/family responsibilities	31	50Note *	24	46Note *	37	52Note *
Personal health	10	21Note *	6	13Note *	7	12
Note † reference category Return to note † referrer Note * significantly different from reference category (p < 0.05) Return to note * referrer Notes: ‘Completers’ refers to people who have a high school diploma or equivalent and ‘leavers’ refers to those who were not attending school at the time of the survey and had not completed high school. Percentages do not add up to 100% because respondents could choose more than one answer. Source: Statistics Canada, Aboriginal Peoples Survey, 2012.

More barriers to education or training among high school leavers than completers

Leavers were more likely than completers to report that they lacked the confidence or felt unprepared to further their schooling. For example, among First Nations people living off reserve aged 18 to 44 years 42% of leavers identified this as a barrier, compared with 20% of completers. Leavers among this group were also more likely than completers to report that furthering their education was not a personal priority (45% versus 25%).

Leavers were more likely than completers to report that time constraints (too busy, no time to study) kept them from taking further education or training. Leavers were also more likely than completers to report that the courses available did not match their needs. Financial considerations usually play a role in continuing education. Leavers were more likely than completers to report costs were a barrier. For example, among Métis aged 18 to 44 years 52% of leavers identified this as a barrier, compared with 37% of completers.

Many Inuit reported that personal or family responsibilities kept them from further education.

For additional information, see The Education and Employment Experiences of First Nations People Living Off Reserve, Inuit, and Métis: Selected Findings from the 2012 Aboriginal Peoples Survey.

Literacy and numeracy

Table 3
Average literacy and numeracy scores of population aged 16 to 55 years, by Aboriginal identity, Canada and oversampled populations, 2012
Table summary
This table displays the results of Average literacy and numeracy scores of population aged 16 to 55 years Aboriginal identity population , Non-Aboriginal identity population , Aboriginal identity population and Non-Aboriginal identity population (appearing as column headers).

	Aboriginal identity population	Non-Aboriginal identity population	Aboriginal identity population	Non-Aboriginal identity population
	Literacy score		Numeracy score
Canada	260	274	244	266
Ontario	269	276	252	267
Manitoba	259	276	245	267
Saskatchewan	248	274	232	266
British Columbia	266	275	250	267
Yukon	242	288	224	274
Northwest Territories	229	280	210	271
Nunavut	207	290	187	279
Notes: Aboriginal peoples surveyed in the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) are composed of First Nations people living off reserve (48%), Métis (44%), and Inuit (5%). In PIAAC, oversamples of Aboriginal people were drawn in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, British Columbia (only for those living off reserve in large urban population centres), Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut. The results were compiled to provide a picture of their skill levels in literacy, numeracy and problem solving in technology-rich environments (PS-TRE), enabling more detailed analysis of the proficiency of these populations in the seven provinces and territories. Source: Statistics Canada, International Survey of Adults, Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, 2012.

Aboriginal people have lower literacy and numeracy scores than their non-Aboriginal counterparts

The Aboriginal population across Canada scored an average of 260 in literacy, which was lower than the average score of 274 for the non-Aboriginal population. For the seven provinces and territories that were oversampled, this difference also held true, but the magnitude of the difference varied. In Ontario and British Columbia, it was 7 and 9 points lower respectively; in the three territories, it was more than 40 points lower.

The average numeracy score for the Aboriginal population across Canada was 244, whereas the score for the non-Aboriginal population was 266. In the seven provinces and territories oversampled, Aboriginal population scores were lower than their non-Aboriginal counterparts, but these differences varied considerably. Among the four provinces, the difference ranged from 15 points lower in Ontario to 35 lower in Saskatchewan; in the territories, the difference was more than 50 points lower. Within each province and territory, the difference was slightly larger for numeracy than for literacy.

For additional information, see Skills in Canada: First Results from the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC).