Education Level Directly Impacts Health Outcomes, Quebec Study Finds
Montreal, November 27, 2025 – A new report released today by the Quebec Observatory of Inequalities establishes a strong link between educational attainment adn overall health, suggesting improvements to the education system could significantly benefit public health.
The study reveals individuals with lower levels of education are disproportionately affected by chronic illnesses, psychological disorders, and have shorter life expectancies. Researcher François Fournier, author of the study, explained, “It’s clear that there are more chronic illnesses, morbidity and depression with a low level of education.And even dementia occurs more quickly as a low level of education implies a whole series of more difficult living conditions.” He further noted the cyclical nature of disadvantage, stating that students who drop out are more likely to face unemployment and their children may enter school with limited socio-economic resources.
Data from 2020-2021 shows a meaningful disparity in dropout rates: 21.8% of students from disadvantaged backgrounds left school without a diploma or qualification, compared to an overall average of 15%.
The report also highlights the economic consequences of lacking education. In 2024, two-thirds of recipients of social assistance programs did not have a high school diploma. Employment rates reflect this, with approximately 40% employment for those without a high school diploma, rising to 66% with a CEGEP qualification and 73% with a university degree. Corresponding average after-tax incomes are $31,000, $45,000, and $62,000 respectively.
“All that to say that this is a first dimension to which we wanted to draw attention as it means that education is a public health issue to the extent that if your education system does not produce or has difficulty producing a high percentage of success rates,there are problems.There are people who fall through the cracks of the social net,” Fournier emphasized. the Observatory’s findings underscore the importance of education as a key social determinant of health.
