THE TRANSITION FROM UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL TO TERTIARY EDUCATION IN ITALY: ITALIANS VERSUS IMMIGRANTS AND RELATIVE DETERMINANTS

Abstract

Two datasets for 2009 were used to compare Italians and immigrants: European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) and the Italian Survey on Income and Living Conditions of Families with Immigrants (IM-SILC). A sub-sample of subjects between 20 and 25 years of age was set up, containing individual, family, and contextual variables. Their effects on the choice of tertiary schooling (yes/no) were assessed using an ordinary logistic model and a Lasso method to determine the explanatory set of variables through a Bayesian approach. Transition from high school to university showed a complex pattern involving many variables: women continued their education more than men; the education level of parents and many components of income entered the model in a parabolic form. Significant contextual factors were the degree of urbanisation and household tenure status. New elements of this study include the sample, the Lasso method in this field, and some empirical results.