Data envelopment analysis to the Italian university system: theoretical issues and policy implications

In this paper, we consider the problem of determining technical efficiency of the Italian universities, focusing on policy and benchmarking implications. Using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), the individual university's efficiency is computed. We run several elaborations matching teaching and research variables representing the education production process. Computational results are given for 58 Italian public universities. We find a core of universities that perform well for various input and output specifications. We choose to focus on a single elaboration, selected on statistical grounds, to derive some policy implications.