Recent college graduates may own many copies of Oh, the Places You'll Go! they undoubtedly received as graduation gifts, but it's doubtful most are finding inspiration in those pages these days. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of unemployed people with a higher degree rose to 1.413 million in November, while there were 1.282 million looking-for-work high school dropouts.
No matter how it's spun, the November jobs report was grim and disheartening for existing job seekers. According to CNN Money, economists use the professional and business services category as a measure for the greater economy, and the November numbers revealed the largest one-month drop in jobs on record for that sector.
The unemployment rate for Americans with a higher degree 3.1 percent as of November, while overall unemployment was recorded as 6.7 percent. Dean Baker, director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, thinks that "College graduates are not going to get away unscathed," and added, "Students understand this is not going to be a market where they will have three or four offers."
Do you know any recent grads that are having trouble finding work?
James Darby
Triumph
Tod's
I had a really hard time getting a job, so I "settled" for one after a year. I was working part time during the hunt, so it wasn't a step up for me.
I am going back to school for a grad cert. in a more "occupational" area. After that, I will be working toward a masters. The wider variety of experience and quals that I have the better.
1My husband waits tables, but he's a lawyer - he just can't find a lawyer job. I consider that "unemployed" in some sense.
2When I graduated college back in '04, I had a hard time finding a job in my field. The market was just saturated... luckily I found a job in my field but it took my 2 years to find it. I settled for the first two years too. Eh, do what you gotta do. I just hate it for new grads now. I'm so grateful to have my job. Period.
lawchick - sorry about your hubby, but I'd be like you... considering that 'unemployed' in a sense. Seems like lawyers are always in need.
3I was pretty lucky. I landed a great job (of course, great pay is not attached) in my field 2 months after graduating. However, about 95% of my friends weren't so lucky. It's pretty tough to believe that any person who did not graduate Summa Cum Laude or get a 4.0 gpa is out of luck, but it's a reality in many cases, and in many cities.
4I'm one of those unemployed grads! It took about 5 months for me to find a job after I graduated and that didn't end up working out, then I waited tables too, and now I'm back in school and hopefully will be in graduate school soon. I'm going to stay out of this job market until things turn around!
5this is depressing. I know I could get a job in my field again because I have a bachelor's and know the right people in my area to get me in, but the pay is pretty much nothing and the stress can be extremely high. The higher level jobs are very rarely open and the people who hold them now are constantly getting pay cuts, and others have been laid off.
The whole thing is just a bummer. I'm lucky my husband makes enough money to hold us together for now.
6hmm. sounds like the story of my life! i graduated in 2007 and have yet to find a job. i'm registered with about 5 temp agencies and haven't gotten anything from any of them either. at this point i've pretty much come to terms with the fact that there is literally nothing out there.
7I graduated with a Bachelor's in '06 and am working as a receptionist (I was temping at first in hopes of finding a job in my field). I'm starting to go crazy working for this company and doing this boring, repetitive job. I certainly don't want to quit until I have another job though. I'd love to get a masters, but I don't really want to take out anymore loans right now and I'd definitely want to do something focused at a specific career, but I'm not sure what. I'm glad to see that I'm not the only one in this boat! I can sure hurt your self esteem and I've come to loathe the question "where are you working now?"!!
8What would be interesting is to see what specific parts of the country this statistic rings true for. Also, to find out what kind of extra curricular, internships, part-time work, etc these recent college grads had and now are still unable to find a job.
9It took me almost a year to find a job after I graduated. It made me regret even going to college because I quit a job with vacation, sick leave, paid holidays, and vacation to go back. Once I graduated, I couldn't find a job that paid me as much, and I wasn't making very much at all, or gave me the same things. I finally did, but I still wonder if it was even worth it. College is a joke and doesn't do anything that working in the real world can't teach you.
10By the way, I had almost four years as a receptionist/admin and various other experience as I was three months from 28 when I graduated from college. It just didn't matter. I couldn't even get an admin position because I was now too qualified for the job.
11I got a good job in my field about 3 months after graduating with my bachelor's. However, I got engaged during my senior year of college and after my husband graduated (the semester after I did), he got offered a super-great job that paid twice as much as mine did...in another part of the state. So I had to quit my job and move and it took me about a year to find a job in my field in this part of the state. So it kind of depends on where you live as well as what your degree is in. You're going to have a much easier time finding a job as nurse than you will say, being a social worker or whatever.
12These statistics don't surprise me. I'm fortunate to have a well-paying job with benefits, but it doesn't have anything to do with my degree. That market is pretty well saturated.
13My boyfriend is having a tough time finding a job. He's been out of college for over 6 months and has had no leads since. Its a shame because I'm still in community college but I have a full time job and benefits. He's not going to catch up to me for a while if the economy stays the way it is.
14My boyfriend is having a tough time finding a job. He's been out of college for over 6 months and has had no leads since. Its a shame because I'm still in community college but I have a full time job and benefits. He's not going to catch up to me for a while if the economy stays the way it is.
15I'm one! I graduated back in May with a BA, but I have yet to find a job. I've worked a few temp jobs, but despite my best efforts there's just nothing out there. At this point, I'm looking to go back to school for a MFA.
16Both my hubby and I have jobs (Thank God). However, he is way over qualified for his position and his currently looking for a new job which is really hard right now. This isn't really surprising to me it's just sad that after all the time/money you put into college at the end you are left jobless.
17I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2007. I was able to have a job lined up for after graduation 2 months before graduation. I'm incredibly lucky.
18Yeah-I have a law degree and a MBA and can't find a job. It's only been two months but I barely get any interviews or call-backs.
19Law, you are right and I wish you two luck. I have so many friends who are out of work b/c of job loss and had to take something or two pt jobs that do not even cover all of their expenses. Thankfully, some of them saved Efunds for this type of thing.
20thanks bella! thankfully I have a good job and his parents are helping us with his school loans until he gets a "real job." I complain about my job sometimes but really know that I should be thankful for the security it provides us.
ladydanaj-- something will work out soon. that extra degree is a big plus! when I was looking to change jobs, it took me about seven months to get offered one, even though I had a good number of interviews. it seemed like forever at the time, but I would've taken just about anything that had been offered to me at that point, and in retrospect I'm SO glad I wasn't offered some of the jobs I interviewed for!
21lawchick im sorry for your husband...and that gives me major anxiety...I'll graduate with my JD in either Dec 09 or May 2010 and I'm already worried. At least I'm not a Dec 08 grad! I'm part time so it is a longer road. I used to complain about it taking 4 years but now I am hoping I can graduate in 2010 and things will be better...maybe...hopefully...because I have no fall back plan to pay for my loans once I am out, no one can help me.
22i am one! i graduated last year with a b.a. from a very good college. a few months ago i started working for a newly founded nonprofit organization but there are no benefits, etc. and i make barely enough to live on. it's so frustrating.
23i am one! i graduated last year with a b.a. from a very good college. a few months ago i started working for a newly founded nonprofit organization but there are no benefits, etc. and i make barely enough to live on. it's so frustrating.
24I graduated 3 years ago. I looked for a job for a long time and eventually settled for a part time job and started taking night classes to get another certificate. It's kind of depressing. The job I have now is so repetitive and has horrible hours and no benefits. All my teachers praise me up and down for my work, but even they don't know anyone who is hiring.
25I graduated two years ago with a BA and couldn't find a job for so long that I went back to my college job as a nanny. I recently moved to another city to start a teacher's certification program, and it took me a long time to find a job here. It's a temp job and I hardly get paid enough to pay bills and buy food. After I finish the certification, I want to get my master's, but I'm afraid that it's not going to help me get a better job in the future.
26i think that it's a really hard time for graduates right now - especially for those who went to school with the hopes of working in finance or something related. it's hard since there was so much promise even 4 years ago when they started and now - that's not the case at all. it makes me fearful for when i have kids and they are ready to go into the working world...
27Not only could I not find a job in my field with my degree, I couldn't find one with my masters, and now with my phd. I work in admin and restaurants just to squeak by, but good lord. Now I'm being told I'm 'overeducated' and therefore not suitable for jobs for which I'm applying! I can't f******g win!
28I'll be one of those unemployed college grads in a few months.
29My boyfriend is apprenticing to be an electrician--NO shortage of jobs in that field!
30Ugh, how true is this? I just graduated from law school in May, passed the bar on my first shot, and still don't have a job. It's maddening!
31i'm in this category. i graduated from college back in march and looked for a job in my field for months! eight months later i still didn't have anything. so i ended up taking a CNA class and got a job in a nursing home three days after i finished the class. it sucks but it pays the bills. now i'm planning on going BACK to college to get my nursing degree.
32I graduated in May and still have yet to find anything besides telemarketing jobs.
I am bored out of my mind and I'm hoping I get into Graduate school just so I can have something to do and occupy my mind.
Stupid job market. UGH.
33I graduated in May with my MA and more than 6 months later I'm still jobless. There's supposedly this "demand" for healthcare jobs (I'm a Mental Health Therapist) but it amazes me how I can't even get a call back let alone someone in HR who is kind enough to answer multiple emails or phone calls. We're doing okay with just my fiance's salary but money is tight. Oh did I mention we're also in the midst of paying for a September wedding? Depressed doesn't even cut it. I worked my ass off for two years to graduate from a well established university and as all of you are feeling, it means nothing. What are we supposed to do? I feel like I'm just going crazy hoping to work. There's really nothing to say to make it feel better. Hang in there everyone--thanks for making me feel a little bit better seeing so many of you struggling as well...it's so easy to feel alone in this underemployment crises!
34The saturated job market doesn't seem to be effecting me or recent graduates I know. In fact, they were able to have a job lined up for after graduation before graduation.
35I graduated in June with a BA and have not been able to findn a job ye, is very discouraging. I'll keep searching but if I am not sucessful I will probably go back to school.
36I know plenty of recent grads who are bright, self-motivated and pretty damn amazing who haven't been able to get a job in ANYTHING for months. I'm so incredibly grateful to have mine and I know I'm very lucky that it's something I've always wanted to do. I just hope I can keep it! Hearing other peoples' stories just make me feel thankful that I get up every morning and have a job to go to. It's just so incredibly competitive out there now - even more so than when I graduated a few years ago, and THAT was difficult for me. I think it's basically impossible now and that's so sad. I really hope this gradually begins to turn around soon.
37Does anyone this there will be a small upturn in "housewives" because of this? My boyfriend has a good job and if I have the same job when we are married I will be spending most of my time at home. And if we ever have kids I'm pretty sure it will be cheaper for me to stay home...
38I graduated with two degrees in April, and I'm still looking. To stay on top of my bills for now, I'm working part-time at a bank, part-time at Ann Taylor, and two days on the weekends as a server at a small restaurant.
It's very frustrating, but it's comforting to know I'm not alone. I'm looking into graduate school programs for the fall.
39I graduated 2 years ago and have been really, really fortunate (though I did have 3 months where I was unemployed). My friends who graduated last year have had a terrible time finding jobs though. I have one friend with an Art History degree who graduated in May and still hasn't found work. I have another friend who got her cosmetology license a year ago and while she got a job in a salon, her work isn't steady enough to cover everything, so she's moving to a new city where work is more readily available.
40My story is similar to that of many,
41I went to ivy league school for my undergrad (MIT) and got an msc at Stanford and looked everywhere i could think of for a position. I got a total of 4 interviews in 2 months. None of the positions were remotely interesting. Had 1 job offer but for a ridiculously low salary (i mean id make more working at a fast food chain).
I'm looking for work in business development and sales in the biotech industry. I was told i was 2 educated for pharma so i looked into biotechnology and still no interviews. I recently booked 3 interviews for January and was only able to get these interviews by calling in favors from former professors and administrators at school. I took the list of professional contacts at companies from the dean's asst and started emailing them one by one. Anybody who wants a career rather than a job needs to network. I have not found a position but am convinced that 1 of these interviews will get me a decent paying job.
Seriously the economy sucks but don't settle for bad wages, work part time but don't work for free.
Good luck 2 all of you
I graduated in May of ′07 and despite taking on multiple unpaid internships and freelancing (paid) opportunities, I still haven′t found a full-time placement. It′s so frustrating, you feel like everything you did to build a strong resume was for nothing. Hopefully things turn around before the next group of ambitious kids enter the job market!
42I have just graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering and have not even had an interview. I'm currently still working as an undergraduate lab technician, which expires when school starts up again.
43I would like to see more current statistics.
I'm not surprised here
I've been out since last summer.
Experience is way better than education.
I'm going to propose a mandate that we should not have to pay all these school loans until we find a reasonable job
(Any job would be nice though for me)
What's going to happen when everything magically gets better?
Say next year or 2 years
Does the company want a person who graduated in 2008 or 2009
or do they want somebody fresh out of school.
Exactly
I believe we've all been screwed
Why should we pay for school which is of no value.
We should all be able to return to school and repeat it for free maybe with a hold on our debt.
I'm living in my car and I don't eat often.
I am paying sallie mae because they are private and you can't defer private loans.
I don't want to go bankrupt before I start life though.
This is why I'm in my car and not eating enough.
My degree is for sale
44Price: Cost of my remaining tuition.
I have two bachelor's degree. After graduating in '06 and seeing the dismal job market, I went back to school in '07 hoping that things would be better when i got out. We all know that's not the case. I don't know if it's my area, lack of experience, or I chose the wrong subjects, but I'm still unemployed after almost 7 months and over 300 applications. I've applied to jobs from fast food on up. I was selling items to pay off expenses, but even pawn shops aren't buying much of anything anymore. Not even internships available. The military is looking to be my only option.
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