Global Inequality of Opportunity in Education Decreased During the 20th Century

Journal article : Comment

We document changes in global inequality of opportunity in education for women and men born between 1941 and 1983, using individual‐level census and survey data on 46.7 million individuals from 95 countries, representing all major regions of the world. We measure global inequality of opportunity in education as inequality in education due to circumstances beyond the control of individuals. In addition to gender and social origin, we treat a person's country of residence as a circumstance that produces inequality of opportunity, because the country of residence is, to a large extent, beyond an individual's control. We test whether global inequality of opportunity in education has increased or decreased across cohorts. Our results show a decline in global inequality of opportunity. The decline is stronger among women than men, although inequality of opportunity remains higher among women than men.

Authors: Grätz, M; Hossain, M; Beretta, M

• Publication status: Published
• Publisher: Wiley
• Journal: The British Journal of Sociology
• Article number: 1468-4446.70105
• Publication date: 2026-03-17
• Acceptance date: 2026-03-04
• DOI: 10.1111/1468-4446.70105
• EISSN: 1468-4446
• ISSN: 0007-1315
• Language: English
• Keywords: education; life outcomes; equality of opportunity; world; inequality
• Subtype: Comment