Italian universities see record enrollment amid skills gap

The Italian university system has reached a historic milestone for the 2024/2025 academic year, with enrollments rising to 2.05 million students. This represents a 16.9% increase since 2018/2019, driven in part by online universities which now account for approximately 18% of total enrollments. This growth occurs despite Italy's general demographic decline.

However, challenges remain regarding graduation rates and international standards. Only 31.6% of Italians aged 25 to 34 hold a university degree, compared to the OECD average of 44.1%. Additionally, only 56% of students manage to graduate within six years. While the number of graduates has increased to approximately 414,000 in 2024, there is a noted misalignment between education and the labor market.

In the Veneto region, specifically Verona, data indicates a significant gap between academic training and employment needs. In 2025, only 9.1% of planned hires in Verona required a university degree, which is below both the national average of 11.6% and the regional average of 9.3%. Despite this, 54.5% of university-level profiles sought by companies in Veneto are difficult to find, highlighting a mismatch between specialized skill demands and available qualified personnel.