Report finds only half of students finish university

For every 100 students enrolled at Greek universities each year, just 52 graduate, according to the latest report by the Hellenic Authority for Higher Education (HAHE) for 2022, which also saw graduation rates dropping steadily through the economic crisis, from 10% in 2013 to 8.6% in 2020, against a European Union average of 23.2%.

The report further reveals that centrally located universities with greater expertise tend to perform better. For example, the graduation rate at the University of Macedonia in Thessaloniki is 82/100 and at Piraeus it’s 80/100; both specialize in economics. In contrast, at the Ionian and Aegean universities (both on islands) it is just 37/100 and 45/100, respectively.

“It’s an issue of explosive proportions that threatens the caliber of higher education in this country,” says Apostolis Dimitropoulos, a former Education Ministry official.