Author Topic: College students cant find jobs (Read 2605 times)

Matthew · « **on:** July 28, 2010, 01:07:59 AM »

What I Did When I Couldn’t Find a Job
July 27th, 2010

Via: Chronicle of Higher Education:

It was a bit of a shock, losing all expectations. For years—all my life, really—parents, teachers, and guidance counselors had told me that if I went to a good college and did well, I would be able to find a job after graduation that would, with a little ladder-climbing, keep me comfortable and financially secure. After I graduated in May 2009, in political science, I moved back home to St. Louis to start my career, but there simply were no jobs to be found.

Over several months, I sent out more than 500 résumés for all sorts of jobs all over the country, but I got only two interviews and no offers.

I couldn’t find a job, but neither could anyone I knew. Now, more than a year after graduation, most of my college friends still live at home, and many of those who have moved out are borrowing money from their parents to eat and pay rent. A few have internships, but most of those are unpaid, and few are likely to lead to jobs. Two friends who studied psychology for four years now work off the books at a sandwich shop. Another, who got her master’s in development studies from Cambridge, became a barista at Starbucks.

Some are applying to grad school just to have something to do, but the prospect of racking up thousands more dollars in student debt is crushing. The rest are still looking, sending out résumés, going to career fairs, volunteering for experience, and networking. Some have given up. We are a whole generation graduating into a job market that has no room for us.

So I moved to India.

Matthew · « **Reply #1 on:** July 28, 2010, 01:08:35 AM »

It sounds pretty bad out there -- certainly not a good time to be investing in a college education!

Lybus · « **Reply #2 on:** July 28, 2010, 07:50:38 AM »

duuuuuuude....

Not cool! I'm in college right now!

Matthew · « **Reply #3 on:** July 28, 2010, 10:46:54 AM »

The bad part is that I have seen articles like this one OVER, and OVER, and OVER again. It seems to be quite common.

I don't have it much better -- True, I have a way to support myself and all, but I have still been placed in the un-enviable position of "raise a decent sized family on one income -- oh, and make sure you are self-sufficient/retired by age 35." Obviously I won't be able to reach that goal, but it's not MY goal! It was placed on me by the year I was born.

I'm always a bit jealous when I read about Baby Boomers discovering how precarious the world economy, social order, environment, etc. is, and they say, "Oh no, I better prepare!" and they cash out their 401K, all $250,000 of it, and go buy a piece of land, a water catchment system, solar panels, a ton of food, etc.

Or, worse yet, they PUBLICLY MUSE about whether or not they should "take the hit" and cash in their 401K to finance their survival preparations. (When you cash it out early, you have to pay an extra 10% tax)

And I'm thinking "it must be nice to have THIRTY YEARS of adult life to prepare for the coming collapse!"

So far I've had about 3 or 4. And grateful for (and trying to make good use of) every day of it!

I'm in the "starting out" phase of life -- so no matter how "awake" I become, I won't have a large nest egg to play with. I feel like I'm getting gypped out of a normal adult life. I often wonder about how prepared I'd be if I had been born 25 years earlier. Of course, that wasn't God's will. I need to remember that.

I shouldn't be too negative, because there are advantages to being young as well. You can learn valuable skills, one's health is usually better the younger you are, etc.

Matthew

gladius_veritatis · « **Reply #4 on:** July 28, 2010, 01:23:24 PM »

At least you found something, my dear...for which I am quite thankful :)