Ireland's workforce most educated in EU with large portion over-qualified

Just under 60% of Irish workers have a third-level degree, with more than 28% overqualified in their current job

Overall, Ireland had the fourth-highest over-qualification rate in the EU, coming behind Spain at 36%, and Greece and Cyprus, both at 32%.

Ireland has one of the highest rates of over-qualification in the EU, with 28.6% of Irish people working in occupations that do not require a third-level degree despite having one.

That is according to newly released Eurostat data finding that Ireland had the highest proportion of employed people with tertiary education, making the country's workforce the most educated in the EU.