The research stream is focused on studying the economic, institutional, and social factors that influence investment in education and the development of human capital by individuals and households. It also examines the organisation and efficiency of educational processes.

Key activities include measuring inequalities and mobility within the Italian education system, based on variables such as gender, migration background, income, region, and other socio-economic factors. Another area of interest is the study of factors influencing school dropout, considering both individual and institutional characteristics, and the development of interventions aimed at reducing this phenomenon.

The initiative further explores the sequence of educational choices, encompassing general, technical, and vocational education, and how these choices are shaped by early decisions, institutional constraints within the school system, skill formation processes, family background, migration status, gender, cultural norms, and external shocks such as economic crises and migration flows.

In terms of outcomes, the project includes the creation of indicators and reports on past trends and the current evolution of human capital development and related policies. This involves building a new student career panel that integrates administrative data with surveys from partner universities. Additionally, new surveys are planned to examine the role of parenting in human capital development and students’ motivations in their educational choices.