The tenure track system in Italy – objectives, expected and unanticipated effects

The tenure-track model had been introduced in the Italian university system only in recent years for the early stage of the career, that one that brings from untenured positions based on fixed-term employment contracts to the first stable academic position (Associate professor). The chapter describes how the Italian academic career system evolved over time. The main focus is on the last reform that instituted the tenure track and its rationales and how it has been implemented. Further, it dwells on the impact of the tenure track in two directions: the overall scientific productivity and the recruitment and career system, highlighting various unintended effects it engendered. Finally, official documents and survey data are used to examine the changes in scientific productivity and longitudinal administrative data to analyse how the tenure track impacts the age and gender of recruited young researchers and their career path.