Education

In the United States, teens go to middle school or junior high and then enter high school, graduating upon completion of 12th grade. Other countries might refer to education after fifth grade as secondary school, sixth-form or preparatory school. In the U.S., the majority of students complete seven years of education after the fifth grade. However, in other parts of the world, including Costa Rica, teens might only have to complete five years of secondary education. Furthermore, it is not uncommon for an international country to require a teen to pass a baccalaureate test during the last year of high school to graduate. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration, teens in Latvia enjoy school more than other young people around the world at 37 percent. Only 18 percent of U.S. teens stated that they like school. An average of 30 percent of British teens state that they feel the most school work-related pressure than other teens around the world, and U.S. teens feel the second most pressured at 29 percent.

Health

Ninety-seven percent of teens in Sweden state that they feel healthy, according to the Health Resources and Services Administration. On the other hand, the teens who feel the unhealthiest are those in Russia at an average of 21 percent. Nearly twice as many Russian girls feel unhealthier than Russian boys. Eleven percent of teens feel unhealthy in the U.S., with more girls feeling unhealthy than boys. Incidentally, U.S. teens report having more backaches and stomachaches than other teens around world, and they represent one of the top three countries to have the most sleeping difficulties, “low” feelings and feeling of fatigue in the morning. Teens with the least headaches, stomachaches, difficulties sleeping, tiredness and “low” feelings were those in Lithuania, Belgium, Germany and Austria. "The New York Times,” in a 2009 article, reported that Austria has the highest number of 15-year-old teens who smoke and Denmark has the highest number of teens who have been drunk at least twice, while the U.S. has among the lowest rates in both categories. However, the U.S. has the highest percentage of young people who are obese or overweight -- the Netherlands has the lowest percentage.

Employment

The worldwide unemployment rate for teens is higher than that of adults. In the year 2012, according to the magazine "Global Finance," the country with the lowest youth unemployment rate in 2012 was Uzbekistan at 0.2 percent. During the same year, only 0.6 percent of teens in Belarus and 0.7 percent of teens in Thailand were unemployed. Kuwait and Singapore also had low teen unemployment rates in 2012 at 2.1 percent. The youth employment rate in the U.S. in 2012 was 8.2 percent. Countries with the highest youth unemployment rates are Greece, Spain, Portugal and Slovakia. In 2011, the unemployment rate for young people was 44.4 percent. During 2012, 53.2 percent of Spanish teens, 37.7 percent of Portuguese teens and 34.5 percent of Slovakian youth were unemployed.

Leisure Activities

While the U.S. has the highest obesity rate for teens, only an average of 22.5 percent of teens report watching four or more hours of television per day, according to the Health Resources and Services Administration. France has the lowest rate of television-watching teens with an average of 15.5 percent, while Lithuania has the highest percent at 43.5 percent. At nearly 76 percent, teens in Ireland exercise the most as a recreational activity, while 64 percent of teens in the U.S. do some sort of physical activity. Teens in Greenland exercise the least during their free time. In all the countries surveyed, boys exercise and watch TV more than girls.