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The paper aims to assess the relative importance of participation and unemployment and the interaction between them in affecting the evolution of employment rates of young graduates in selected European countries. The Taylor formula is used to read the behaviour of employment rates in terms of movements in activity and unemployment rates. Using this analytical procedure, the comparison between the selected countries underscores two aspects in particular: the progressive isolation of Italy, due to the poor results of the reform of the higher education system at the end of the 1990s, and the widespread progress within the female segments. On a more general plane, the heterogeneity of European labour markets for young graduates assumes new characteristics in the decade but—it is argued—it remains significant. The relative importance of participation and unemployment, the impact of the reforms of the higher education system, the reaction to the crisis of the late 2000s, and the gender aspects sharply differentiate the evolution of young graduate employment in the individual countries

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This article assesses the effectiveness of a reform of the higher education system aimed at stimulating employability and faster access to the labour market for Italian graduates.\ud Using the Taylor formula, the evolution of the employment rates has been\ud followed through the movements and interaction of activity and unemployment rates. The progress in the level of educational attainments has not been accompanied by a true reversal of the weaknesses within the Italian youth labour market. Two main\ud results emerge. First, delayed entry into the Italian labour market remains a peculiar characteristic of young graduates. Second, the comparison within the 25–29 age group reveals weaker results among first-level graduates. Policy interventions are suggested

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