Earlier that year in June, the job market landscape for young college graduates changed completely, disenfranchising many and creating a depressing reality. According to recent economic data, U.S. workers between the ages of 22 and 25 have been grappling with a daunting challenge. Employment among those in jobs most at risk from artificial intelligence (AI) has decreased by 13% since 2022. Yet this drop has sparked a broader movement. Indeed, this year, the unemployment rate for “new entrants,” including new college graduates, has reached a nine-year high.
For recent Georgetown University graduate Christina Salvadore, living and working in New York City’s fashion or beauty industries was a dream that became a mirage. Instead, she’s left to contend with a punishing job market. As an artist, she has hustled for every position she’s held in academia, print publishing and digital media. Though the opportunities are few and far between, she’s hell bent on making her own mark.
For Emma Zatkulak, the force of her circumstances was very real. Inspired, she decided to take action and submit her applications weeks earlier than she’d initially intended to. These challenges to getting a job have motivated her to move quickly.
Unsurprisingly, in Nashville, Julia Vasedkova of Tennessee’s Rhodes college has seen many of her classmates leave for promising careers. All this, while she continues to manage her packed course load—and two jobs—calling and interviewing for sales and insurance positions. Vasedkova’s experience shows the difference between expectations on graduation and job searching in reality.
Gad Levanon is chief economist of the Burning Glass Institute. He characterizes the current environment for young graduates as “no country for young grads.” This sentiment resonates with many of these recent graduates, seeing that their peers are leaving them behind in this increasingly competitive market where jobs are running out.
The economic landscape presents additional challenges. The chance of losing a current job within the next five years has jumped for workers aged 18-34. This is the highest rate since 2013. Laura Ullrich, PhD, is Indeed’s director of economic research for North America. She understands the fear millennials have about entering this new economy and labor market. As they work to find stability in their careers, the new realities make matters worse by increasing their fears.
Spotty job postings from green, blue, and gray collar sectors paint a broad picture of these changing prospects. Software development job listings on Indeed are still only around 66% of their pre-COVID pandemic levels. Perhaps most startling, we’ve witnessed a decline of over 47% in our startups’ software development job postings. In contrast, nursing job postings have risen about 16% above baseline numbers.
The share of young Americans attaining four-year degrees is on the rise, further souring the mix. Yet while more young adults are graduating from college than ever before, the competition for quality jobs has increased dramatically.
Michael Hartman encapsulates the feelings of many recent graduates: “I feel like I’m behind right now.” This apprehension conveys a much larger concern felt by many of those across academia. They fear if their hard fought learning will translate into tangible careers.