Is Italy the worst EU country for fresh graduates?

Rome: Only 67.5% of people aged 20 to 34 manage to find a job in Italy within three years of graduation, Eurostat data shows.

Slowly but surely, the rate of recent EU graduates who obtain employment within three years is going up.

The latest Eurostat data found that the percentage grew by by 1.1% between 2022 and 2023, a 9.2% jump from 2013.

The only contraction throughout this decade occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Today, the rate stands at 83.5%, with Malta enjoying the highest employment share at 95.8%.

Besides the small Mediterranean island nation, the list is topped by the Netherlands at 93.2%, followed by Germany at 91.5% and Austria at 89%.

Italy is at the bottom, with only 67.5% of people aged 20 to 34 who managing to find a job within three years of graduation.

This data however does not include the large number of irregular workers, which in Italy is estimated to be nearly three million people – almost 13% of the country’s workforce.

In terms of foreign students, Germany is the main go-to destination. The country accounts for 24% of all tertiary students from abroad studying in the EU, followed by France at 16%.