Greece has Europe’s oldest professors

Greece has the oldest university lecturers in Europe and the fewest aged under 35, according to a recent report by the National Authority for Higher Education (EThAAE). More specifically, of the 17,049 permanent lecturers at Greek universities, more than half are over 50.

As retirements far outnumber appointments, Greek universities have been plagued by chronic understaffing. This has served as a vicious counterincentive for young academics who migrated abroad during the financial crisis to return to Greece - with all that implies for education levels and research in the country.

According to Eurostat, in 2020, Greece (51.9%), Italy (51.2%) and Bulgaria (50%) had the highest number of professors aged over 50. The EU average is 31.80%.

In Greece, 46.6% of those over 50 are aged up to 64, with 5.3% in the 65-67 age group. In five countries (Latvia 15.6%, Slovakia...