Employment, satisfaction and the brain drain for south Italy’s graduates

This article aims to describe the brain drain from Southern Italy (the so-called Mezzogiorno) to Northern Italy and to analyze its causes and consequences. To this end, we have processed the individual data of the ISTAT survey on the professional placement of the graduates of 2001 three years later. The empirical evidence suggests that the graduate labour force of the Southern regions goes where the demand is, and finds jobs that fall short of the qualifications obtained. While labour mobility increases job opportunities, it does not guarantee greater “satisfaction” in terms of economic conditions and career possibilities to southern graduates, and seems more the result of necessity than a free choice.