Little is known about the educational consequences in Iraq during the U.S.-led
invasion of 2003-2010. This study examines school enrollment based on the 2007 Iraq
Household Socio-Economic Survey. There are three main findings. First, a populationweighted
analysis indicates that the school enrollment rate (72.3 percent) is lower than past
Iraqi rates but comparable to that in neighboring Arab countries. Second, a multivariate
analysis shows that boys and rural children are far more likely to be enrolled. Last, household
opinions suggest that a key reason for non-enrollment is lack of child or parent interest. An
analysis of adult labor force participants suggests that the lack of interest is attributable to
weak employment prospects for educated youth.