Compare like with like

The commentary and illustrative map "Second degree of separation" (News, 8 November) was drawn from the 2012 Bologna Process Implementation Report. Although interesting, it does not compare like with like.

The UK will tend to fare badly for several reasons, including some countries' pre-Bologna traditions of initial higher education awards at the master's level; differences in whether holders of first-cycle professional-entry courses (such as nursing) are included in the graduate count; and the UK practice that post-graduation training in many professions (eg, accountancy and law) leads to qualified titles rather than postgraduate awards.

It would be interesting to see a proper comparison with factors such as these taken into account.

Stan Lester, Stan Lester Developments, Taunton