Recent College Graduates Face Tougher Job Market as Entry-Level Hiring Slows

For generations, the path after college seemed straightforward: graduate, find a job and begin building a career. But for many recent graduates, that path is becoming increasingly difficult.

Young workers are spending months searching for employment, with some submitting hundreds of applications before landing a full-time position.

Jacqueline Klein, who earned a master's degree in communications in May, began applying for jobs well before graduation. She says she has submitted applications for more than 500 positions.

“Overall, it's been a very frustrating process,” Klein said.

College graduates ages 22 to 27 now face an unemployment rate of 5.7%, compared with an overall unemployment rate of 4.1%.

Economists describe the situation as a career ladder that has effectively frozen. Fewer workers are moving up into new positions, which means fewer openings are becoming available for people trying to enter the workforce.

Glassdoor's Daniel Zhao describes the current labor market as “sluggish,” saying hiring is moving very slowly.

Artificial intelligence is also adding uncertainty for young workers, although Zhao says AI is not yet the primary reason entry-level hiring is struggling.

“I don't think that AI is yet at a stage where it's really powerful or useful enough to really be replacing jobs or to be preventing employers from hiring,” Zhao said.

The slowdown is also affecting industries differently. Healthcare has added more than 390,000 jobs over the past year, while the information sector, which includes many technology and media positions, has lost 81,000 jobs.

As a result, more entry-level workers are turning toward industries they see as offering greater job security.

For Carmen Stangata Jr., landing a job came only after at least 150 applications and a series of side jobs and other work.

His advice to other recent graduates is simple: don't give up, keep searching and use the resources available to you.

For young workers trying to get their careers started, the job search may be taking longer than they expected.