Abstract

The Council of the EU recently adopted a new benchmark on the employability of graduates that aims to measure the contribution of education and training to the transition from education to employment. This indicator - which is based on labour force survey data - is defined as the share of employed among 20-34 year olds who graduated during the previous three years, and who are not currently in education or training. This work uses the above indicator to shed light on the overall profile of young Italians entering the labour market and the relevant changes between the pre-crisis and the current crisis period. This article also analyses changes in the quality of work for this population group, with particular reference to job security and job match. Employment prospects for young Italians with high school diplomas appear much worse than their European peers and compared to Italians with university degrees. However, recently employment opportunities have also deteriorated for university graduates, thereby increasing Italy's already considerable distance from the European average. No particular university degree seems to have sheltered young Italians from the impact of the crisis. Job instability has increased for both high school and college graduates with the former also suffering from higher levels of job mismatch.