Cyprus recorded the smallest proportion of young teachers of any EU member state in 2024, according to figures published by Eurostat on Monday. Just 3.1% of teachers in Cyprus were under the age of 30, compared with an EU average of 8.0%.
The data place Cyprus at the bottom of a ranking in which the share of young teachers in some member states is almost five times higher.
Lowest and highest shares of young teachers
After Cyprus, the lowest shares of teachers under 30 were recorded in Portugal at 3.3% and Poland at 4.0%.
At the other end of the scale, Luxembourg recorded the highest share at 15.3%, followed by Denmark at 15.2%, Belgium at 14.9% and Austria at 14.6%.
Teacher numbers across the EU
According to Eurostat, a total of 5.30 million teachers were working in primary and secondary schools across the EU in 2024, an increase of 36,500 compared with 2023.
Women accounted for 72.9% of all teachers, while men made up 27.1%.
An ageing teaching workforce
The figures also point to the ageing of the teaching workforce in the EU. 40.4% of teachers were aged 50 or over, while only 8.0% were under 30.
In five EU countries, more than half of all teachers were aged at least 50. The highest share was recorded in Lithuania at 58.4%, followed by Portugal at 55.6%, Italy at 54.3%, Latvia at 54.0% and Estonia at 50.6%.
The lowest shares of teachers aged 50 or over were recorded in Ireland at 20.8%, Malta at 20.9% and Luxembourg at 22.0%.
Gender breakdown by age group
Regarding the distribution by gender and age, Eurostat reports that the share of male teachers remained relatively stable across most age groups, at between 26% and 30%.
The exception was teachers aged 65 and over, among whom men accounted for 35.6%, a difference Eurostat links to variations in statutory retirement ages.
