Italy has successfully hit its European Union target for reducing early school leaving ahead of schedule. In 2025, the percentage of young people aged 18 to 24 who dropped out of school without a diploma or professional qualification fell to 8.2%, dropping below the 9% threshold mandated by the EU for 2030. This marks a historic turnaround for the country, which recorded dropout rates exceeding 20% in the mid-2000s. Italy is now among 17 EU member states that have already achieved the target, outperforming the wider European average of 9.1%.
Despite this national progress, significant social and territorial inequalities remain. Unlike the broader European trend where dropouts are more common in rural areas, the phenomenon in Italy is heavily concentrated in urban centers, particularly within neighborhoods facing socio-economic hardship. Catania leads the negative rankings, with over a quarter of young adults leaving school early, followed by Palermo and Naples.
The wider European landscape remains deeply fragmented. While Poland boasts a low dropout rate of 4%, countries like Romania (15.5%) and Germany (13.1%) struggle with some of the highest rates on the continent. The findings highlight that while Italy has cleared the primary European benchmark, targeted local interventions are still urgently needed to bridge deep urban educational gaps.