Colombia: 1964, 1973, 1985, 1993
France: 1962, 1968, 1975, 1982, 1990
Kenya: 1989, 1999
Mexico: 1960, 1970, 1990, 2000
United States: 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990
Vietnam: 1989, 1999

Colombia 1964-1993: Persons age 5+.
France 1962: Persons age 10+.
France 1968: Persons age 14+.
France 1975: Persons age 16+.
France 1982-1990: Persons age 14+.
Kenya 1989: Persons age 6+.
Kenya 1999: Persons age 5+.
Mexico 1960-1970: Persons age 6+.
Mexico 1990: Persons age 5+.
Mexico 2000: Persons age 6+.
United States 1960: Persons age 5+.
United States 1970: Persons age 3+.
United States 1980: All persons.
United States 1990: Persons age 3+.
Vietnam 1989-1999: Persons age 5+.

EDATTAIN records the person's educational attainment in terms of the level of schooling completed (degree or other milestone).

EDATTAIN gives schooling level completed: conceptually, highest "degree" earned. Thus a person attending the final year of secondary education receives the code for having completed primary schooling only. Many samples also give single years of schooling completed, which is recorded in the YRSCHOOL variable.

The first digit of EDATTAIN -- denoting less than primary, primary, secondary, or tertiary education -- is largely comparable across countries. The second and third digits retain details such as differing years of primary schooling, technical versus general study tracks, and different types of degrees earned.

To create a consistent standard across countries, we applied the United Nations standard of six years of primary schooling, three years of lower secondary schooling, and three years of higher secondary schooling. It was not possible to sustain these distinctions consistently across all samples because of differing national educational systems. The second and third digits of EDATTAIN account for such differences.

For those samples in which only individual years of study were reported, we grouped those years according to the 6-3-3 classification. For samples that gave level of study and years within level (e.g., Colombia), we classified the data according to the national system. In countries specifying only degrees and not years of study, we classified the degree into one of the existing categories. If the number of years to attain a degree did not precisely fit our system, we coded the degree into the highest available category that was lower than the years of study expected for the degree in question.

See the "codes" link above for specific category availability.

"Primary (5)" indicates completion of a five-year system of primary study; "primary (6)" indicates six years of study.

Lower secondary means the completion of nine to eleven years of study. It is divided into technical and general study tracks. The general track allows continuing study at higher levels; technical degrees are terminal.

Secondary study has detailed categories for some college study and technical degrees. Post-secondary technical degrees are classified (with a detailed code) under secondary study to distinguish them from university degrees.

University degrees are not distinguished in all samples. When a sample reported only the number of years of university study, we considered completion of four or more years to equal a university degree. Persons with fewer than four years of university study are coded "secondary, some university."

Colombia is the only country in IPUMS-International with five years of primary study.

Persons with "special" or "fundamental" education are coded "less than primary."

The 1993 sample combines some university education and a university degree in the same category. All such cases are coded to secondary, some university. The cases in 1993 that are coded "university" in EDATTAIN are persons who reached post-university study.

The 1964 and 1973 samples distinguished between technical, normal, and basic secondary study. For 1985 and 1993 this additional information is not available.

France reports only degrees earned, not years of schooling. The lowest level of education reported is a six-year degree under the old system and a ten-year degree after the extension of compulsory education. Persons with a ten-year degree are coded "lower secondary", and those without such a degree are coded "less than primary," (despite the fact that they might qualify as having completed primary schooling in other countries).

The 1982 and 1990 samples have two-year university degrees, which we have coded as "university."

Kenya added an extra year of primary school in 1985. The new system requires one less year of study to complete higher secondary education.

Mexico is comparable across years and generally fits the IPUMS-International classification for EDATTAIN. Everyone reporting four years of university study is considered to have attained a university degree.

The U.S. samples for 1960-1980 posed no difficulties for categorization, because they reported individual years of study. The 1990 U.S. census grouped grades 1 to 4 and grades 5 to 8. We coded persons who completed grades 5 to 8 as "primary (6)", effectively over-estimating their average educational attainment.

Two-year college Associates degrees are coded "post-secondary technical."

Vietnam reported individual years of schooling, and therefore fit into the 6-3-3 system used in EDATTAIN.