This paper explores the influence of Italian high school students'
proficiency in mathematics and the Italian language on their university
enrolment choices, specifically focusing on STEM (Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Mathematics) courses. We distinguish between students from
scientific and humanistic backgrounds in high school, providing valuable
insights into their enrolment preferences. Furthermore, we investigate
potential gender differences in response to similar previous educational
choices and achievements. The study employs gradient boosting methodology,
known for its high predicting performance and ability to capture non-linear
relationships within data, and adjusts for variables related to the
socio-demographic characteristics of the students and their previous
educational achievements. Our analysis reveals significant differences in the
enrolment choices based on previous high school achievements. The findings shed
light on the complex interplay of academic proficiency, gender, and high school
background in shaping students' choices regarding university education, with
implications for educational policy and future research endeavours.

该研究探讨了意大利高中学生在数学和意大利语方面的能力对其大学入学选择的影响，特别关注科学、技术、工程和数学（STEM）课程。研究区分了高中科学和人文背景的学生，提供了对他们的入学偏好有价值的见解。此外，我们还调查了相似的以前教育选择和成就对不同性别学生的影响。研究采用梯度提升方法，该方法在预测性能和捕捉数据中的非线性关系方面表现出色，并且校正了与学生的社会人口特征和先前教育成就相关的变量。我们的分析揭示了根据高中以前的成就而存在的入学选择方面的显著差异。这些发现揭示了学术能力、性别和高中背景在塑造学生有关大学教育选择的复杂交互中的作用，对教育政策和未来研究有重要意义。