The variables of education and region (of origin)

National averages mask very significant regional differences in young people’s access to work. Region is one of the main factors influencing young people’s transition into employment. In 2024, among 20–34-year-olds no longer in education or training, the employment rate stood at 81.4 per cent in the North and 74.9 per cent in the Centre, but fell to 54.0 per cent in the South. The gap between the North and the South was therefore 27.4 percentage points (Table 5). Crucially, this gap does not disappear as educational attainment increases. Among young graduates, the employment rate was 88.7 per cent in the North and 70.7 per cent in the South, with a gap still standing at 18 percentage points. Education therefore considerably improves individual opportunities, but it is not sufficient to offset the differences between local labour markets. There is also an issue regarding the mismatch between qualifications and jobs. In 2025, 24.3 per cent of young people aged between 20 and 34 were overqualified for the work they were doing. Among school leavers, this figure reached 33 per cent. The coexistence of skills shortages reported by businesses and overqualification shows that the problem in Italia also lies in information asymmetries, as well as sectoral, regional and qualitative mismatches. Continuing education is undoubtedly a productive investment, not merely a measure of employability. In 2022, 42.2 per cent of Italians aged 18–24 had taken part in non-formal training activities in the previous 12 months, compared with 47.6 per cent in the EU. Among work-related training activities for 18–24-year-olds, 58.9 per cent were funded by the employer, a proportion similar to the EU average.