Canadians the most well educated adults in the world, OECD says

Canada has the most educated adults in the world said the OECD.

Despite 51 per cent of the population having earned a post-secondary degree, many smart Canadians earn below the median wage.

“The thing that surprises me most is why so many people may not try to reap the benefits of employment when they have a high level of education,” Patrice de Broucker, a Statistics Canada senior analyst, told the Toronto Star.

Indeed, more than 17 percent of Canadians with an education beyond secodary school earned less than half the national median income in 2009.

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Why? Education and immigration were big factors.

New immigrants to Canada tended to have higher degrees, yet earned well-below their pay grade.

Still, the report put Canadians in front of many countries in a number of education-related categories.

It's rate of post-secondary education was a full 20 percent above the OECD average and five percent above Israel, the country with the second largest amount, said CBC News.

The study was done by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) using data from 2008, 2009 and 2010.