This study investigates the phenomenon of school segregation in two European cities, Milan and Oslo, focusing on the interplay between residential patterns, school choice, and segregation at both city (macro) and neighbourhood (micro) scales (Boterman et al., 2019; Bonal and Belleï, 2018). The comparison offers a unique perspective, as Milan operates within a free school choice system in a context of relatively low residential segregation (Cordini et al., 2019; Pacchi and Ranci, 2017), while Oslo enforces restricted school choice in a city marked by high territorial segregation (Cavicchia and Cucca, 2020). Our research addresses these research questions: What is the extent of school and residential segregation among public primary school pupils in Oslo and Milan? How does school choice influence segregation patterns? Are areas with high and low socio-economic segregation equally impacted by school choice mechanisms? The analysis utilises individual-level data on all public primary school pupils in the 2018-2019 academic year in both cities. Employing quantitative methods, we examine ethnic and socioeconomic indicators, calculate Dissimilarity Indices for schools and catchment areas, and analyse trends in local schools’ enrolments. Particular attention is given to the socio-economic profiles of schools and neighbourhoods with below-average retention of local students by the catchment area schools. Findings reveal both similarities and differences. In Milan, school segregation exceeds residential segregation, while in Oslo, school segregation is slightly lower than residential segregation. However, in both cities, the areas most affected by opting-out are characterised by deprivation and segregation of minorities and disadvantaged groups, leading to more segregated local schools. Regardless of institutional frameworks or overall spatial segregation levels, neighbourhoods with higher concentrations of disadvantaged groups face a common challenge: significant portions of local populations avoid their assigned schools, and this behaviour appears driven more by avoidance than a pursuit of higher-quality education. Our results highlight that school segregation arises from the interaction between institutional access rules, school choice practices among parents, and the spatial distribution of the school population, highlighting the importance of considering educational landscapes (Boterman et al., 2019). Policy implications suggest that school choice regulations play distinct roles in interaction with the spatial configuration of socio-economic inequalities. The study raises the critical question of whether segregation is shifting from urban space to urban services, calling for targeted interventions to address these emerging patterns.

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